Towers
by Liila6241
Summary: "Once we were built like towers- nothing at all. We were built like towers, now my heart feels nothing at all." Direct Sequel to "Skyfall." Part 4 of the "Living Louder (Will I Stand or Will I Fall?)" Series.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hey, remember when I said I was going to post this in like a month or two? Yeah, that didn't happen—I mean, good lord, it's only been like two days! This is the direct sequel to "Skyfall" and you cannot read this without having read the other. **

**Inspired by: "Towers," by Little Mix.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters.**

**Warning: suicidal thoughts and implications, mentions of suicide attempts, past trauma, and death.**

* * *

Prologue

"_There are reports of an explosion in Midtown Manhattan."_

"_Police indicate that the explosives went off at the construction site for the 'New and Improved' Avengers Tower."_

"_There are suggestions that the Avengers were targets in what some are calling a pre-meditated attack."_

"_Police reveal that there were people inside at the time of the explosion including renowned billionaire, Tony Stark."_

"_Robert Lewinski, the supervisor of the Tower's construction, confirms that he, along with several workers, were in the building with Stark prior to the explosion." _

"_Lewinski informs our correspondent at the scene that Stark calmly and strategically removed everyone from the building. Stark was the only one remaining in the building at the time of the explosion."_

"_A witness reports that Lewinski and his team had safely made it to the ground when the first explosion went off."_

"_Police confirm that the only causality, in what they are calling 'an act of terrorism,' is billionaire and inventor, Tony Stark."_

"_A quote from Robert Lewinski has surfaced. He states, "Mr. Stark protected us in a time of panic and horror, sacrificing his own life so that we could continue to live ours. Mr. Stark died a hero and should be thought of as nothing less."_

Natasha watches the various news reports as JARVIS clicks through the channels, eyes wide, mouth hanging open slightly as she holds the edge of the couch in a vice grip. She's shaking, unable to process what she's seeing. The team has been getting better since Steve's death—Tony was getting better. He was smiling, laughing from what Pepper and Rhodey told her, she had just spoken with him in person _an hour ago_ . . . and now he's gone. Just like that. Just like Steve.

"I let him go," she says, words falling from her lips.

"Nat?" a voice—Clint—asks. He's sitting beside her, close enough that she can feel the heat radiating off of him.

"I let him go, Clint. He was still in recovery and I let him leave the mansion alone," she says voice distant. She can't even begin to explain how terrified the team was—how terrified_ she_ was—when Pepper told them of Tony's suicide attempt. It's as if the reality of how their friend tried to take his own life, brought them all back into reality, making them realize how they've faded apart and returned to old habits. They're stronger as a team and they had almost forgotten it until that had nearly lost another one of their own.

They had stayed at the hospital with him—all of them, afraid that if they left or a moment _(or even blinked) _he was going to be gone. When Tony was released, their fears worsened when he refused to leave his room so they took turns checking up on him throughout the day and night and Pepper had JARVIS monitor his vital signs, which he continuously ran live and sent the data to everyone's phones. Some nights Natasha laid awake, watching Tony's vital signs on her phone, body tense and ready to move at a moment's notice if something changed—

"Hey, hey, Natty-Cat, I need you to breathe with me," Clint says, tearing Natasha out of her musing (her guilt). She looks down at her friend; the archer is now sitting in front of her, hands warm and comforting as his thumbs rotate in a circle on her knees.

Natasha nods as she registers Clint's words, taking a breath _(Inhale. One . . . two . . . exhale)_ before meeting her friend's gaze, his face grim and pained. She tears her eyes away from him before scanning the room. Bruce is sitting in the chair next to her, eyes screwed shut, with a green tint to his skin. Thor is sitting on the other couch, expression pinched, his eyes focused on the screen and mouth drawn in a tight line. Rhodey's still at work, Bucky's been missing for a month, and Pepper—

A sob from the direction of the entryway causes Nat's head to whip to the side. Pepper is standing in the doorway, red eyed with fresh tear marks along her cheeks. Her normally pristine tan blazer is rumpled and crinkled, her heels removed and phone clutched tightly in her left hand. Her bottom lip is wobbling and she looks as if she might start crying again at any moment.

"I called his voicemail seventeen times," Pepper says, brokenly, a tear sliding down her face. "Just to hear him speak."

Wordlessly, Nat slips out from underneath Clint's grip, crossing the room and wrapping Pepper in her arms. The other woman crumbles against her, pressing her face into Natasha's neck, shoulders shaking violently and tears dotting the assassin's skin.

The front door opens and shuts before Rhodey comes into view, uniform disarrayed and expression screwed into a grim mask while his eyes reveal the torment and heartbreak he's experiencing. He looks between Natasha and Pepper, the former keeping her eyes locked on Rhodey's face. "So, you guys . . ."

Natasha licks her lips in order to disguise her own mouth wavering. "Yeah."

Rhodey nods, his mask cracking as he steps up behind Pepper and wraps himself around her back, hands resting on Natasha's sides. She hears Clint come up behind her, warm weight pressing into her back, arms going around her and Pepper before placing his hands on Rhodey's biceps. Nat listens as Thor and Bruce approach their huddle as well, curling themselves around Clint and pressing the archer further against her back.

Nat feels tears prickling at her eyes and she sniffles, trying to hold them back. Her efforts are useless and she buries her face into Pepper's shoulder, clinging to the woman as she allows herself to grieve.

* * *

That night, the Avengers are sitting on the living room floor, piled on top of each other as a movie plays in the background that no one is watching. It's as if they're caught in a trance that cannot be broken no matter how much they want it too. Natasha sighs and shifts so she can rest her head on Clint's chest, counting the man's every breath as a way to assure her that he's still alive and with her. She's already lost two people she considered dear friends even though she never admitted it aloud (she regrets never saying anything) and she doesn't want to lose anymore.

A knock on the door startles the team out of their trance. Natasha lifts her head from Clint's chest squinting her eyes before the person knocks again. Assured that the noise wasn't her imagination, she slowly rises to her feet, noting that her teammates move to do the same. After everyone had finished grieving, they've been moving throughout the mansion as if they're glued together. The only time they separate is when someone needs to use the bathroom, but they have JARVIS monitor the person until they return to the group.

Nat leads the way into the living room but Clint is the one who opens the door. The person on the other side is Bucky, eyes red rimmed, shifting awkwardly with Steve's shield strapped loyally to his back as if his friend is still watching his six. He looks exhausted and unkempt, clothes torn and covered with dirt stains, dark circles lingering underneath of his eyes and stubble growing in on his chin. She wants to scold him for not keeping up with his grooming _(like Steve would),_ but she can't find the words. The most important thing to her is that he's alive and home.

"Oh thank God," Clint says relived, voicing her thoughts as he pulls Bucky into a hug, the other man going willingly and wrapping his arms around Clint in return.

After a few moments, Clint releases Bucky from his embrace and steps out of the doorway, allowing the other man to enter the mansion. The brunet takes his time wandering between each of the Avengers and giving them a bear hug and an apology, to which they dismiss the latter. They formally introduce him to Pepper, and he goes to give her a handshake but she shakes her head and wraps him in her arms, telling him that she's glad he returned.

Bruce ushers everyone into the kitchen when their reunion is finished, commenting on how none of them have eaten yet and how it looks like Bucky hasn't gone near a meal for the better part of the month. He's gone into mother hen mode and it makes Natasha want to scream because_ Steve_ used to be that person for them.

Everyone gathers around the kitchen table except for Bruce and Nat—the former rummaging through the fridge looking for something for them to eat while the latter starts a pot of coffee. She leans against the counter watching the mixture drip into the pot while she listens to the quiet conversation the others are having on the opposite side of the room.

"James, if I may inquire, why exactly did you leave us?" Thor asks, both curious and concerned.

Bucky takes a deep breath looking disturbed. "I left because of Winter Soldier. After I got my memories back, he was dormant until—until Steve died. I saw him go down during that last battle and I just—froze. Then, he took over."

"Winter Soldier appeared because you were emotionally compromised?" Rhodey asks voice gentle yet firm.

"I think so. I was in no condition to fight and—I think he was trying to protect me," Bucky says, furrowing his brow, turning his gaze downwards to stare at the table.

"Pardon me for asking, and you don't have to answer this, but exactly how much to you remember," Pepper asks, cautiously as she rests her now clasped hands on the surface of the table.

Bucky raises his eyes from the table and looks at Pepper. "Long story short, I remember it all—what I did as Winter Soldier as well as my life before and during the war."

Everyone falls silent right as the coffee finishes. Natasha pulls down a glass mug from the cabinet above her head, pouring a hearty amount of the liquid drink into it before adding four spoons of sugar. She walks over to the table and sets the cup down in front of Bucky. His eyes slide up to meet hers and she can see the years of pain, torture, and heartbreak in that gaze. He looks twenty-nine and ninety-nine and in that moment, Natasha vows not to let anything else happen to him or the rest of the team ever again.

She holds his gaze as a ghost of a smile crosses her lips. "Welcome home."

* * *

Sunlight filters through the room the next morning and Natasha shifts, opening her eyes only to immediately close them. She yawns and slowly slides her lids open again, blinking rapidly until her eyes adjust to the brightness of the light. The redhead takes a moment to determine her position, noting that she's curled on the living room carpet in front of the couch. She furrows her brow in confusion as to why she's sleeping her when the events of what happened yesterday run through her mind, her body immediately tensing as a painful numbness prickles over her skin. She lifts her head off the ground in a panic, eyes scanning the room for her teammates.

Clint is laying sprawled out behind her, face pressed into the carpet, mouth wide open with drool dribbling from the corner of his lips. Pepper is laying on one of the couches with a red and yellow blanket draped over her frame, her head resting on a pillow next to Rhodey's thigh. Rhodey is sitting up straight on the end of the couch, head tipped back and hands resting in his lap. Bruce is curled up in the chair next to Rhodey and Pepper, a novel held loosely in his hand and his reading glasses still perched on his nose. Thor is in the second chair next to Bruce, reclined backwards and softly snoring. Bucky is lying on his back on the second sofa, clinging to Steve's shield like a child would their favorite stuffed animal.

They're all wearing the same clothes from yesterday, none of them bothering to change after dinner. Instead, they returned to the living room and attempted to settle in for the night. The redhead scans over the room one last time before she forces her body to relax after confirming that her teammates are present and safe _except for Tony and Steve_. She forces that thought from her mind and moves to lie back down, pillowing her head on her arms and closing her eyes.

"_Miss Potts, sorry to disturb you, but Agent Coulson is on the line" _

Natasha cracks open one of her eyes and winces at the pain in her neck; she must have fallen back asleep. She moves her body into a sitting position and rolls her shoulders, sighing when her neck pops. The redhead looks around, noting that Thor and Bucky are unbothered by JARVIS's announcement. She's surprised that Bucky is still asleep especially since from what Steve told her, he's been having a lot of trouble sleeping but has been getting better. He must be truly exhausted since he didn't even shift his position.

Bruce is awake, but still has his eyes closed. Rhodey is fully awake and alert, speaking with Pepper who appears disoriented. Clint shifts and sits up next to her, his eyes still closed. He yawns before leaning over and resting his head against her shoulder, body warm and heavy against her side. She frowns and lightly shoves at him, listening to the man whine and burrow his face into her neck.

"Get off—I don't want you to drool on me."

Clint grumbles something under his breath that sounds a lot like "Fuck you, Nat."

"JARVIS, I'm here." Pepper's voice rings out a few minutes after Clint had fallen silent. She sounds alert, her tone levelled and firm.

"_Agent Coulson is on the line,"_ JARVIS repeats.

"Patch him through," Pepper says, linking her hand with Rhodey's as if to draw strength from the other man.

"Pepper?" Coulson says, voice filling the silence that had fallen over the room.

"Hey Phil," she responds, a tight smile on her lips.

"How are you and everyone holding up?"

"We're . . . together," she responds. And she's right. Natasha knows they aren't going to recover from their friends' death and it will be a long time before they start to feel like they can function in their everyday lives, let alone in a battle. For now, all the Avengers can do is lean on each other and stay together- as a team.

"How's Nick doing?" Pepper says, changing the subject.

"He's managing," Coulson responds. "He's personally taken command over the investigation into Tony's death while Agent Hill and I have been keeping the press busy."

Pepper grips Rhodey's hand tighter and squeezes her eyes shut, fighting off a wave of tears. After a few moments, she opens her eyes. "Phil, I can't even begin to thank you and everyone for all that you're doing."

"Tony was a good person and an important part of our organization. It's the least we can do."

Pepper tries to hum in response, but it comes off as a pained whine.

"Is there anything at else I can do for you?" Coulson asks in a soft tone.

"Can you arrange a vacation for us?" Pepper says, half joking.

"I'll see what I can do," he says, his voice so earnest and serious that Pepper has to bite down on her lower lip to keep from sobbing at his generosity.

The rest of the conversation fades into the background as Nat ponders over everything she just heard. Clint moves to lie on his back and she takes the opportunity to slide to her feet and head into the kitchen aware of the archer's eyes on her the entire way. The redhead immediately goes to the fridge; she opens it up and grabs a coke _(Steve usually drank coke—Bucky and Tony would make fun of him by calling him a True American boy. Steve would frown and call them both idiots.)._ She shuts the door and hops onto the counter, popping open the top of her drink and taking a large slip. Nat purses her lips and holds the can between her clasped hands as she thinks over the past day.

"JARVIS," Natasha whispers as she dangles her legs over the counter top.

"_Mistress Romanov?"_

"We never asked how you feel about Tony," she says. They asked about Steve—well, _Tony_ asked about how JARVIS felt about Steve's passing while the others listened without making it obvious that they were. She feels ashamed that they didn't take a moment yesterday to ask how the A.I. felt about _his creator_ dying.

JARVIS remains silent for a moment as if to gather their thoughts. _"I am deeply saddened and troubled by sir's passing, but at the same time, I could not have been more proud. For as long as I know, sir did not believe that he was a hero, yet he died doing the one thing he never thought he would become." _

She never thought of it like that. Pepper mentioned that Tony was always reluctant to call himself a hero despite how offended he was that his persona was considered for the Avengers Initiative and not the man himself.

"_Despite sir's passing, I will continue to perform my duties as I was programmed until I am no longer required of service."_

"We're always going to need you JARVIS," Nat says, reassuringly. "You keep us sane."

JARVIS whirls. _"Thank you, Mistress Romanov."_

* * *

That evening, Bruce makes pizza.

Pizza was always an Avenger's favorite (other than _Kristyn's_) and Natasha can't even begin to describe how many times they've started a Pizza Food Fight while Steve had a heart attack in the corner about how casually they waste food.

Bruce sets two of the four large pizzas—one pepperoni and one meat—on the table. Clint licks his lips and rubs his hand together, gazing over the food with a crazed look in his eyes. He reaches for a slice when Bruce slaps his hand with a spatula. The archer yelps and Pepper laughs— a sound Natasha is glad to hear from the other woman, who looks broken when she thinks no one is looking.

Natasha always is.

"What the hell was that for?" Clint protests.

"We don't eat until everyone is present," Bruce responds calmly, setting the spatula down on the table.

"Everyone _is_ present."

"James is not," Thor responds.

They had silently decided after Fury's phone call that they needed to stop moving as a unit as soon as possible so that they don't grow completely dependent on each other and have problems separating if the need arises. Most of the team remained in the living room anyway, but Bucky slipped away as soon as he realized that no one was going to force him to remain there. According to JARVIS, he was still in the mansion and everyone is assuming he just needed some alone time.

"I'll go and look for him," Natasha volunteers, sliding her chair back and rising from her seat.

She exits the kitchen and walks into the atrium, pondering on where the other man might be. "JARVIS, where's Bucky?"

"_He's in his room, Mistress Romanov." _

"Thank you." Nat takes the elevator to the third level of the mansion and navigates her way through the corridors until she reaches Bucky's room. She knocks on the door twice and receives no answer.

She frowns. "Bucky, I respect your privacy, but I'm coming in anyway." Nat turns the doorknob and nearly gasps at what she sees.

Bucky is sitting on his bed, shirtless, metal arm gleaming in the low lamp light, hair falling over his face. He's turning over a silenced pistol in his hands, caressing the gun with his metal fingers and Nat can only imagine what his face looks like. A cold feeling washes over Nat as she has flashbacks to when Tony nearly died. She'll never forget how Pepper sounded when she screamed _"Nat, he tried to kill himself"_ over the phone.

Panicked, she crosses the room and rips the gun from his grip. "What the hell are you doing?" she demands, wordsescaping her lips without her even realizing it. The pistol is heavy in her hands and she tightens her grip on the weapon when she realizes that the safety _is not on_.

Nat must have caught Bucky off guard if his wide-eyed, startled expression is anything to go by. He probably wasn't expecting anyone to come upstairs and interrupt him and dammit, Nat is glad that she got here when she did.

"Natasha, give me my gun," Bucky says slowly, holding out his hand for the weapon.

She stands her ground. "No."

The man frowns, not liking Natasha's answer. Good—he wasn't supposed to. His body tenses and the redhead knows he's going to try and get the weapon back by force and she's right for less than a second later, Bucky lunges forward. Natasha easily side steps the other man watching as he barely catches himself before running into his closet at full sprint. She darts to the other side of the room and notices Steve's shield sitting on the bed. Bucky follows her line of site and must have the same idea she does for he rushes towards the bed.

She throws the gun to the side, thankful that it doesn't go off and runs towards the bed. Nat reaches the bed first, grabbing the edge of the shield with both hands and swinging it. The object connects to Bucky's head with a sickening sound before he collapses to the ground in a crumpled heap, unconscious.

Natasha licks her lips in an effort to get control of her panting and full body tremors. She tosses the shield back onto the bed and kneels down beside Bucky's head, gazing down at the man with a pained look on her face. She brushes some of his hair away from his forehead and waits for JARVIS to alert the others, not knowing what else she can do.


	2. A Year in the Making

**Warning: mentions of death, suicide implications, past trauma**

* * *

A Year in the Making

Natasha opens her eyes finding herself lying in the middle of her bed sprawled on her back. She yawns and turns her head gazing at her alarm clock, surprised that it says eleven-thirty. She usually rises much earlier than that though, in her defense, Avengers karaoke sessions are intense and filled with vodka. Nat sighs and turns to look back at the ceiling as heaviness settles in her chest—Steve loved karaoke and always managed to coax Tony into joining him in a duet. She closes her eyes and sighs again. She still can't believe it's been a year _(one year, two months, seventeen days) _since Steve and Tony's deaths. Someone once told her that time heals all wounds; she doesn't remember who is was but they were a dirty fucking liar.

Three weeks after Natasha walked in on Bucky, they were all teasing him because he didn't know how to use a microwave. It was good-natured teasing with no bite behind it and Bucky was laughing along even though he looked embarrassed. Everything was going okay until Bucky asked Steve for backup. The laughter immediately stopped as Bucky looked to his side, realized Steve wasn't there, and left the room in a panic.

Sometimes Rhodey will have to catch himself from asking where Tony is when he comes home from work (he had joined the Avengers full time, but still works for the military). Bruce had all but adopted Dummy, letting the robot roll around his lab even though he crashes into everything and breaks things. Sometimes Natasha will wander into his lab out of boredom and see Bruce giving the robot a fond look—like a part of Tony is still with him.

Thor continues dividing his time between the mansion, Asgard and Shield and has recently been going to visit Jane in London (she sent her love and condolences). Pepper is always on the move, guzzling coffee and running on little sleep. One time, she burst into Natasha's room in the middle of the night, declared Tony instilled bad habits in her, and broke down on her floor. Clint and Natasha have been keeping their emotions together when they're with the team and try to keep everyone smiling and laughing throughout the day. When they're alone, they'll allow for their masks to fall as they lean on each other support.

On the year anniversary of Steve's death, Bucky cried heavily the entire day clinging to his friend's shield as he rocked back and forth in a corner of his bedroom.

On the year anniversary of Tony's death, Pepper cried in sporadic bursts and Rhodey took a rare day off from work to stay home and comfort her.

Time hasn't made anything easier. The Avengers can never go back to the way things were before no matter how much they want it to. Hydra took everything—changed everything. Fury has been keeping the Avengers up to date on his investigation. He believes that Tony was murdered in a premeditated attack on the Avengers, backed up by the evidence that a majority of the bombs were located on every floor that was set aside for the team. Natasha sincerely hopes the mole is tracked down soon so she can bring them and Hydra to justice. And by justice, she means impaling every single one of them on the end of her blade.

She's jolted from her thoughts by the sound of a loud banging from downstairs. Her eyes snap open and she's immediately on her feet, gun clasped firmly in her hands as she rapidly looks around her room searching for threats.

"JARVIS, what the hell was that?"

"_Master Barnes had tripped and fallen into the rack where the pots and pans are kept. He may have injured a hip and is having trouble getting back up."_

Natasha snorts loudly. She flips the safety of her gun back into place before sliding the weapon underneath her pillow. She gives her bed a longing look and sighs—there's no point in laying back down again now that she's on her feet and alert. She shakes her head as she goes through her drawers grabbing a large white t-shirt, undergarments, sports bra, and a pair of black leggings before heading towards the shower.

* * *

"Where are the others?" Natasha says as she enters the kitchen, feeling clean and refreshed, her damp hair tied into a bun at the back of her head.

Bruce is wandering around the kitchen making lunch (honestly when is that man not cooking), Bucky is sitting at the kitchen table reading a magazine, and Thor has materialized in front of her holding a steaming cup of coffee. She accepts the mug with a smile and settles at the table across from Bucky, noting that it appears as though the three men have been up for a few hours.

"Clint is still sleeping, Rhodey is working, and Pepper is at Avengers Tower-Stark Industries," Bucky informs her. The team was going to move into the tower, they've made the mansion into their home and they didn't want to move Tony and Steve's things. It just didn't sit right with them.

"Well, technically, she's on her way here for lunch, but you get what I'm saying," Bucky continues.

Natasha hums her response and takes a large sip of her coffee. Thor plops down next to her and gives her a smile before pulling out his Stark Phone and opening an app for messaging. Nat is under the assumption that he's going to talk with Jane.

The group of four sits in silence for a while with the only sounds being Bruce cooking and Bucky turning the pages of his magazine. Even though Natasha wouldn't mind some casual conversation, the silence isn't uncomfortable by any means and she has no immediate urge to say anything.

Footsteps coming from the hallway pull Natasha back to reality (when did she zone out). She turns her head to the doorway and watches Clint walk in scratching his stomach. His dirty blonde hair is disarrayed and he's still wearing his pajamas which consist of a white tank top and a pair of yellow pants that have little Iron Man's on the fabric. Tony bought those for Clint as a gag gift for his birthday. The archer wasn't amused, stuffed the pants into the back of his closet, and forgot about them. After Tony passed, the archer dug them back out and frequents wears them around the house.

Clint's not the only one; all of the Avengers have some type of Iron Man memorabilia. Bruce has an Iron Man watch meant for kids (_"It's _limited edition_, Bruce, and you should be grateful," Tony had said with a cheeky grin_), Rhodey has an action figure, and Pepper has several photographs of the armor. Thor has a t-shirt, Bucky has an Iron Man refrigerator magnet that Tony had stuck to his arm to see if it would work, and Natasha has a keychain. Steve had wallpaper (again—meant for children), which Tony had covered his bathroom with one afternoon when he was bored, but eventually the Captain had gotten Iron Man himself.

"Oh, man, I'm so fucking hungry," Clint says pulling Natasha out of her thoughts.

"Hi Hungry, I'm Natasha," the redhead whispers.

The archer pauses in his stride towards the fridge and turns to give Natasha a disbelieving look. "Did you just make a _dad_ joke?"

Natasha grins.

"Oh my god, I don't believe you. Actual White Suburban Father Natasha Romanov," he says exasperated to which she laughs.

"Would someone tell Steve to get Tony out of the lab, lunch is almost done," Bruce says out of habit while moving around the kitchen. When he realizes what he said, he ceases all movement and leans against the counter before slightly heavily. "I miss them. Sometimes, I still can't believe they're gone."

Natasha purses her lips. "Hey remember that time we let Steve order a pizza for the first time?" she says, breaking the tense silence that had fallen over them.

"Yeah, turns out the guy was a huge Cap fan and Steve talked with him for three hours straight. Never did get that pizza," Clint says with a shake of his head. "Remember when Tony tried cooking to impress Steve."

"He almost burned down the tower," Bruce says with a snort. "This is why he was no longer allowed in my kitchen."

"And you are a much better cook than he was," Natasha says. "His attempt at making fajitas gave me the runs for a week."

"She was literally glued to the toilet and writing down all of the ways she was going to stake him with a piece of string," Clint recalls with a laugh. "She made me deliver all of the notes to him personally. Tony was amused."

"Was that not the same week you saw our friends in the throes of passion?" Thor questions.

"You actually walked in on them?" Bucky says, sounding amused.

"Yeah, I panicked and ran through the tower screaming, _"Steve and Tony are fucking! I so called it!"_"

"Who knew that you were right all along," Bruce says.

"I told you I see better from a distance because I saw that coming from a mile away."

Natasha covers her mouth to prevent a loud laugh from escaping.

Clint shakes his head and opens the fridge, pulling out a can of coke and taking a large gulp. He closes the doors and leans against the fridge. "But man, that was not how I pictured seeing Cap's ass for the first time."

"Oh?" Bucky says, leaning forward in his seat with a smirk on his lips. "How did you see that panning out?"

"Let's just say it would have involved a premeditated incident at a swimming pool . . .," Clint says trailing off in an attempt to be mysterious.

The Avengers present start laughing and Clint grins proudly before joining in.

"_Doctor Banner, Miss Potts has arrived."_

"Excellent, tell her I made her favorites."

_"Understood."  
_

* * *

The team (minus Rhodey, who is still working) is in the living room later that afternoon watching _Return of the Dragon_ when Natasha gets a call.

"Assemble the Avengers and get your asses to Headquarters immediately. We know who the mole is," Fury states before she even gets the chance to say hello.

"I'm on it," she says before hanging up. She rises to her feet and looks at her teammates, who are regarding her curiously. "We have to get to Shield. The mole has been identified."

The Avengers immediately scramble to their feet and rush out of the room to change and arm themselves, nearly toppling over each other in the doorway. Pepper remains seated on the couch and pulls out her phone. "I'll call Rhodey and have him meet you guys over there—"

"You're coming too," Natasha says before dragging the woman off the couch and pulling her towards the elevator.

"What? I'm not—"

Natasha pauses in her stride and whirls around to face the woman, tightening her grip on the other's wrist. "You're an Avenger, Pepper. Just like Bucky, Rhodey, Coulson, and JARVIS. We need you to suit up."

Pepper stares at Natasha wide-eyed for a few moments before she regains her composure and straightens her posture. "JARVIS."

"_Miss Potts?" _

"Does Tony have any completed suits?"

"_Sir had begun the repairs on the Mark Fifty-Two. It is currently at seventy-five percent capacity."_

"I need for you to finish those repairs," she says, linking her fingers with Natasha's looking carefree and wild—two expressions the assassin has never seen on the other woman.

"_Understood."_

"Also, does Tony still have those metal bracelets that are connected with the suit so it will come when I call?"

"_They're in the lab."_

"Excellent, I'm going to need those too," she says, giving the Widow's hand a firm squeeze.

Natasha regards the other woman, feeling pride surging through her. She squeezes Pepper's hand back and smiles.

* * *

Clint lands the Quinjet in the Helicarrier's hangar and the Avengers quickly pile off. Natasha looks around for a moment before spotting Rhodey waving at them on the opposite end of the hangar, standing next to the suitcase that houses his armor. The redhead alerts the team and leads the way to his position, proud of the fact they managed to make it to headquarters in record time.

Natasha had left Pepper in the atrium while she rushed to her room and changed into her uniform. She did a quick weapons check before moving to leave when she noticed two keychains—the Iron Man one that Tony gave her which is linked with a keychain of Cap's shield she found at the mall—sitting on her nightstand. Nat looked at the objects for a moment before she swiped the keychains off her table and stuffed them into one of the pouches on her belt before she left her room. She had run downstairs and met up with her teammates, who were all dressed and outfitted with their weapons (Bucky had Steve's shield strapped to his back and Nat doubts that he'll ever be seen without the object again). She nodded to the other Avengers before leading the way outside.

They had piled into the mini-van and driven to Tony's private hangar at the airport where the Quinjet is still housed. There's a Helipad on top of Avengers Tower-Stark Industries (A.S.I.) they can use but they haven't moved the jet for two reasons. One, they don't want to have the risk of endangering Pepper's employees in the event that someone attacks the jet or the Tower thinking that the Avengers are inside; and two, sheer laziness mainly on Clint's part since he flies the Quinjet ninety percent of the time.

"Hey Rhodey," Pepper says in greeting, moving to walk ahead of Natasha and hug her friend.

Rhodey returns the embrace. "Hey Pep," he says before releasing the woman. He nods to the others in greeting before saying, "Let's go see what the Director has in store for us."

Clint leads the way out of the hangar and through the maze of corridors that is the Shield Helicarrier. After about ten minutes, the archer is pushing open the double doors to the Avengers usual meeting room where Fury, Hill, and Coulson are already waiting surrounded by stacks of files. The Director is standing at the head of the table looking at the tablet in his hands while Coulson and Hill are seated on either side of him and are pouring over a few of the files. The three of them glance up when they hear the door open. Fury sets down his tablet and frowns.

"I thought I said that this meeting was for Avengers; no disrespect, Miss Potts," Fury says when he sees Pepper trailing in behind the team.

"With all due respect Nick, I am an Avenger," Pepper declares echoing Natasha's words, which causes a proud smile to cross the assassin's face and Hill to mask a snort. "Don't worry; you can count on me when needed. I have a suit."

A curious look crosses Fury's features. "So, should we call you Iron Man?"

"No, absolutely not," Pepper says firmly. "That was Tony's persona—no one else can be Iron Man but him."

"I understand," Fury says. "But, we still need something to call you in the field."

Pepper thinks for a moment before smiling. "Rescue," she says her eyes distant and nostalgic. Natasha has no doubt that there is a story behind that name that involves Tony somehow.

The Director nods his confirmation. "Rescue it is."

The Avengers move further into the room and settle around the meeting table. Pepper sits down next to Coulson and offers the man a small smile and a friendly greeting. Rhodey takes the next seat followed by Clint, Natasha, Thor, Bruce, and Bucky who slides the shield off his back and sets it on the table in front of him. The two chairs between Bucky and Hill are empty and Natasha feels a tightness in her chest at the thought of who should be occupying those seats.

"Alright, so let's get to the point. Who was the mole?" Clint says, getting right to business before anyone else can speak.

Fury waits a beat before answering. "Alexander Pierce."

"_Secretary _Pierce?" Pepper exclaims, horrified.

"He was right under our noses the whole fucking time," Clint growls out.

"He was at the Maria Stark Foundation Ball a year ago. I spoke with him—I danced with him," Pepper continues as if Clint hadn't spoken. She rubs her left thumb over the metal bracelet fitted it to her right wrist, seeking comfort from the object.

"Pierce was my boss – he had access to everything and everybody," Fury continues. "He was working for Hydra during the trials and who knows how long he could have been with them before that."

"I've uncovered from our contacts that Pierce was high in Hydra's ranks—many of them believe that he was the second in command," Hill announces. "I've heard a rumor that he was named the successor to Hydra after you all defeated Skull."

"Do you know where he is?" Rhodey asks after a few moments of silence.

"No, conveniently, he fell off the grid. But, what I do know is that Hydra is still active and . . ." Hill pauses in her speech, biting down on her lip and Natasha knows that what she says next is not going to be good. "Hydra has merged with Department X despite years of hostility and rivalry, mainly due to a common goal. They want the Winter Soldier back."

Bucky's body immediately tenses and his eyes slide shut. He curls his metal hand into a fist and places his flesh hand on top of the star in the center of Steve's shield as if he's drawing strength and sanity from the object.

Natasha's breath catches in her throat, her posture stiff as she tries to stop herself from shaking as memories from her past surge through her mind. She was a puppet of Department X and their infamous Red Room Division, molded into the perfect spy—the deadly Widow. Even after the Soviet Union fell, one lone base remained active secretly experimented on people in an attempt to create another Winter Soldier _("The asset is defecting the mission and the Motherland," she overheard the scientists yelling. "Wipe him and start over. Our greatest success will not be our greatest downfall!"). _

She had managed to escape the Red Room in the late nineties, ending up in Budapest where Clint found her and brought her to Shield. He saved her, gave her a purpose. He became someone she could always rely on—he became home to her. Natasha Romanov isn't Natasha Romanov without Clint Barton. She still has red in her ledger and she owes him _everything_.

Natasha is pulled from her thoughts when Thor slams his fist down on the table in anger, leaving a dent in the metal. Normally, Fury would be scalding him for messing up his furniture, but the Director looks like he wants to do the same.

"James, I will do everything in my power to make sure that those monstrous villains never lay a hand on you again," Thor vows, voice low and dangerous.

"Don't worry because I'm going to kill them all. Hydra separated Steve and me again- they took Tony from us. They don't deserve to walk this earth," Bucky declares, ignoring the curious glance Fury shoots his way. "Take this however you want, but you can either stand with me or get the hell out of my way. I'm taking them down."

A deadly smirk crawls across Natasha's face and she tilts her head to the side. "So, what's the plan?"


	3. The Beginning

**Listening to: "Miss Crumby"—The Audition **

**Warning: death, brief mentions of gore, mentions of past trauma and brainwashing**

* * *

The Beginning

The plan is simple.

"We're going to locate a Hydra base—preferably an active one but it doesn't matter—and we're going to make as much noise as possible," Bucky says.

Bruce furrows his brow. "Wouldn't that be counterproductive?"

"No; Pierce is like Skull—he wants us to know that it's him behind all of this," Bucky explains. "If we make him angry enough he'll slip up and either make an appearance himself or reveal whom is goons are which will allow for us to get a decent look at what Hydra has become and what to expect in the future."

"How do you know it will work?" Hill asks. "You're basically suggesting a suicide mission."

Bucky snorts. "What do you think Steve, the Commandos and I did during the war—sit around and twiddle our thumbs? We eliminated bases all across Europe with no warning, no mercy, and no survivors. There will be seven of us going into the base at once, which is more than enough to take out Hydra."

Hill still doesn't look convinced.

Bucky's expression softens. "Trust me, I know guys like this. Pierce will show his face. We just need to give him a reason too."

Natasha thinks over Bucky's suggestion. Hill is right. There's no guarantee what Hydra has become over the past year and the Avengers don't know much aside from what they've just been told because they've been mostly out of the game for so long. Fury kept them up to date on what had been happening but the world hasn't needed the Avengers for the past year and frankly, the team desperately needed that time to come together and regroup.

At the same time, Bucky looks so confident that his plan will work and he hasn't looked anything close to this—hell this is probably the first time he's spoken so much in over a year. Natasha looks at Bucky for the first time she doesn't see The Winter Soldier. She sees Bucky Barnes.

Natasha grins. This plan _is_ suicidal, yes, but she has no doubt in her mind that it's one Cap would have approved of. "I'm in."

Bucky's head snaps up, looking at Natasha with wide eyes as if he's surprised that someone is agreeing with him. Hill has a similar expression, only she masks hers quickly, uncrossing her arms and folding her hands on the tabletop.

The redhead turns to look at Clint, noting the archer regarding her with a fond expression. The corner of her mouth quirks upward and she nods her head.

Clint shrugs. "I've never stormed a base before and I'll try anything at least once. Count me in too."

"It's not the weirdest thing I've ever done—you wouldn't believe some of the shit Tony would convince Pepper and I do," Rhodey says and Pepper lets out a laugh.

"We're in," Pepper says her gentle tone a stark contrast to the determination glowing in her eyes.

"I would be honored to follow you into battle, James," Thor declares with a nod.

Bruce places a hand on Bucky's arm and nods his head. "For Steve and Tony."

Bucky gives Bruce a small smile and places his hand over the latter's. "For Steve and Tony."

Fury hums in a curious manner (Natasha isn't sure what to make of that, but she has a feeling that something good isn't going to come from it). "I have a feeling that you lot are going to follow this suggestion no matter how reckless it may be. I'm going to save us all three hours and dismiss you now. Gather some Intel and report back in a few hours. Let's lure the dragon from its den."

* * *

Back at the Mansion, the Avengers immediately get to work. Pepper, Bruce and Rhodey go into Bruce's lab to see if they can find any clues while they have JARVIS scan the area for leads. Bucky hit the streets before anyone could intervene, searching the city on foot for clues. He knew the team would want to keep him inside for his own good but it's dangerous for him to be on his own especially with both Hydra _and_ Department X after him.

Nat is in the living room with Thor and Clint trying to track Bucky down—he's a ghost, he was trained to disappear, he could be anywhere and nowhere at the same time. Thor is attempting to cast a spell Loki taught him a few centuries ago to locate Bucky's heat signature while Clint is hacking into the city's cameras. Natasha aids the pair for a while unsure exactly of what she can do other than hacking with Clint. It's while she's gaining access into the camera on the Google Earth car, she gets an idea. Nat sets her laptop aside, uncurling herself from the chair she was sitting in and stretching her limbs.

Clint glances at her from where he's sitting on the couch, his laptop propped on his thighs typing away while some type of music is blaring through his headphones _(she's told him to stop playing his music so loud or else he's going to need hearing aids one day). _She can't make out the words but knowing Clint, it's probably Taylor Swift.

"Let me know when you find him," she mouths out.

Clint nods his head before turning back to his monitor.

Nat moves away from the chair and steps around Thor, who is sitting near the furniture—back straight, eyes closed and arms spread wide as he concentrates on casting the spell. She takes the elevator up to her room, closing and locking her door behind her.

The redhead grabs her keys off her dresser before walking over to her nightstand, unlocking the drawer and tossing the keys before pulling out a black pay-as-you-go phone that she hasn't used in years. Natasha sits heavily on her bed, staring the phone debating on whether she should make the call. After a few moments, she takes a deep breath and turns on the phone before dialing a familiar number.

"Natalia Alianovna Romanova," the woman says over the speaker in a thick Russian accent and Nat can hear the smirk in her tone. "I'd never thought I'd hear from you again."

Katerina Petrovna Smirnova—goes by Katrina Dunbar these days. She is a hacker whom Natasha worked well with when they were both "employed" for Department X _(they didn't trust each other at first but had a mutual respect of the other's abilities and talents. In another life, they may have become friends)._ When she escaped from the Red Room, she took Katerina and four others with her scattering themselves across the globe desperate to leave Russia behind. Despite Natasha wanting to forget about all the horrid things and people she was surrounded by, she never lost their numbers or locations.

"Things change, Katerina."

The other woman sighs in what sounds like a loving manner but Natasha can hear the underlying tension in the action. "I haven't been called Katerina in years."

"I need to call in a favor."

"Oh? Might I ask the occasion?"

"No."

Katerina pouts or at least Natasha thinks she's pouting. In the past, the other woman always had a flare for being dramatic and exaggerating except during missions. She was sensual, sexual, and Natasha never knew how to handle her—both on and off the field. "Natalia, you know how much I don't like it when you don't share with me but . . . I'll let it slide since we haven't spoken in so long. What do you need?"

"I need you to find the location of a Hydra base—it doesn't matter if it's active or inactive. I just need confirmation that it's them."

"Hydra? I thought they were destroyed in the forties by the "Great Captain America" and his band of hooligans?"

Natasha chews on her lip to prevent herself from saying something she might regret. Steve and his Commandos were not thought of highly in Russia _(everyone knew he was dead but they wouldn't put it past the Americans to lie in order to get an advantage over the Motherland)_ but Department X continuously praised Cap for dropping the greatest gift to mankind right on her doorstep. It was only after she joined Shield that she learned more about Steve and the harsh reality of their words hit her like a freight train.

"Apparently not," Natasha manages to say.

The other woman scowls. "I can't stand those Nazi fuckers. Gut one of them for me, will you?"

Natasha feels a smirk crawl across her lips. "I'll give them your greeting."

Katerina hums before changing the subject. "Found one. There's a base located in Tavistock, New Jersey. I can't tell if it's been active recently but I know it has been in the past five years at least. Is that what you required?"

The assassin nods even though the other woman can't see the motion. "Yes, thank you for your assistance."

"It's not a problem—you did help me get out after all. I'll contact you when it's my turn for a favor."

Natasha purses her lips and hangs up the phone.

* * *

"Hey when we're done here, can we pop by Atlantic City? I want to try my luck at the slots."

"Clint, the last time you played the slots, you lost forty thousand dollars and your pants."

"Your point?"

Natasha rolls her eyes and turns her attention to the large warehouse across the street, which has several large shipping crates in front of it and is shrouded in the darkness of the night. She informed the other Avengers (and Fury) of the Intel she knew as soon as she hung up the phone with Katerina _(Bucky had retuned on his own while she was upstairs and Clint her about Pepper yelling at the brunet for running off as he did)._ The team changed and checked their weapons before they drove out to Tavistock _(near the Pennsylvania-New Jersey border; population five—three women, two men, one child)._ Pepper parked the minivan a few blocks away while Natasha and Clint slipped out of the vehicle and swept the outside of the warehouse before reporting to the others that the perimeter was secured.

"How should we do this?" Rhodey asks, pulling Nat out of her thoughts. Since this is more of a stealth mission, he and Pepper didn't want to wear their armor for it would make too much noise and reflect off of any light source. He opted for his Air Force Officer uniform while Pepper borrowed one of Natasha's old stealth suits.

"Quietly," Natasha responds. "Rhodey you take point, I'll take the middle and Clint will bring up the rear."

"Alright," Rhodey says with a nod as he pulls out his weapon, checking the ammo before clasping the gun in front of him with both hands. "Let's move."

Rhodey darts across the street followed by Bruce, Pepper, Nat, Bucky, Thor, and Clint in that order. The Lieutenant Colonel crouches down behind one of the large crates, waiting until the others are position before peering around the edge of the object. When he determines the immediate area is clear, he carefully moves to the next position with the rest of the team following him.

The Avengers continue moving in that fashion until they reach the warehouse doors. Thor and Bucky leave the formation and use their strength to open the doors while the others slip inside first. When the team is secured, Bucky and Thor enter the warehouse and let the door close behind them.

The interior of the warehouse is large and spacious, the only light coming from the moon via the skylight that covers the entire ceiling (odd for Hydra but they were always best at hiding in plain sight—at least that's what she's been taught and now experienced with Pierce). There are several side rooms lining each of the four walls and various types of equipment scattered everywhere.

"This used to be Hydra," Clint says as he glances around the area. "It looks like it hasn't been used in years."

"Maybe that's what they want you to think," Bucky says. When Clint turns around to look at him with a raised eyebrow, he says, "What I saw it in a movie once?"

"Or in an episode of The Twilight Zone."

"Uh, Rhodey, where's your suit?" Bruce asks as he moves to stand next to the other man.

Rhodey pauses for a moment before sighing heavily and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Shit, it's still in the car."

"Um," Pepper says, gesturing to her hands, which are holding the handles of two familiar suitcases.

Rhodey sighs relieved and takes his armor from the woman. "Pepper, you are a lifesaver."

Pepper shrugs. "It's what I do."

The pair set their suitcases flat on the ground before stepping on them. Both of the objects open up and their armor raises upward, the metal encasing their bodies until they are completely covered. The two opt to leave their face plates flipped downwards.

Natasha turns away from the group and walks further into the base, heading into the one of the side rooms nearby. She glances around the area before watching as Bucky enters the same room, scanning the area with a worried expression as he pulls Steve's shield closer to his body.

The assassin furrows her brow and looks over the equipment for a few moments before realizing these machines were probably used for brainwashing and memory erasing. Her eyes widen and she turns back to Bucky noting the man is standing in the center of the room, his posture stiff, back straight, and muscles tense. He scans the room with a careful expression as if waiting for their enemies to appear and try to take him away.

Natasha crosses the room, making her footsteps noticeable so he doesn't lash out. She pauses at his side and looks at his face, able to see that Bucky's eye is twitching and his whole body is shaking. The redhead bites down on her lip, wanting to reach out but prevents herself from doing so. Instead, she says, "Do you remember them keeping you here?"

Bucky turns his head and stares at Nat for a moment before nodding hesitantly. "Yeah, the Red Room had me in the area to complete some mission—it might have been an assassination. I don't remember the specifics and that's probably for the best. They wanted to move me to Massachusetts and then into Canada, but they couldn't because New York was being invaded at the time—or so I was told."

Natasha's eyes widen at this revelation. If they would have known—if Steve would have known, she has no doubt in her mind that he would have gone after Bucky, New York Invasion be damned. He was so close yet so far and the horrible thing is none of the rest of the Avengers would have cared including her at the time.

"I'm sorry." _(We could have done something—we were right there! We could have rescued you—you could have been freed that much sooner but we fucked __**everything**__ up!)_

Bucky regards her for a moment before shaking his head. "It's not your fault—you didn't have a hand in my brainwashing."

Natasha bites down hard on her bottom lip, words wanting to escape that she's not ready to say yet. After a few moments, she jerks her head to the side and says, "Let's keep looking."

She and Bucky walk back into the main room when a noise coming from above draws their attention to the ceiling. "What the hell was that?"

"No idea, but it doesn't sound good," Bucky says, keeping his gaze on the skylight. "We need to round up the others and—"

Whatever Bucky was about to say next is cut off when a large shadow drops through the skylight and onto the ground. Bucky immediately pulls Natasha close and throws the shield over their heads as glass falls around them, shards glinting of the moonlight looking like falling stars. The brunet carefully lowers the shield, shaking the glass off the object and releasing Natasha.

The redhead slowly walks away from Bucky being mindful of the glass. She watches from the corner of her eye as the rest of the team either file into the main area or remove themselves from cover, staring at the shadow. After a few moments, the shadow moves and Natasha notices that it's a group of people. Once that realization hits, it doesn't take her long to figure out that they've been discovered by Hydra.

From the middle of the group, a person rises to their feet (Nat assumes they're the leader), wearing a skull mask and a black stealth suit with the sleeves ripped off and crossed bones branded across the torso. The person has several weapons on them, the most notable being an assault rifle strapped to their back and two guns strapped to their thighs. This person carries themselves as a soldier and Natasha gets the feeling that she knows whom this is, her eyes filling with recognition when the person pulls of their mask and grins.

"Brock? What the hell man? You're Hydra," Clint says as he loads an arrow into his bow.

"Yeah, sorry for not telling you—it was kinda a big secret."

Natasha curls her hand into a fist, shaking with anger. She and Clint have been friends with Brock Rumlow (Codename: Crossbones) for years—they trained together, ate together, fought together. He was always a valuable ally to the archer and the assassin but apparently, it was all a lie. "How long?" she asks through gritted teeth.

Rumlow hums. "Long enough."

"What happened to the families that lived here?" Rhodey demands.

"Oh didn't you know? There was an accident," Rumlow says with a smirk. He spares a quick glance at Bucky and Natasha immediately knows that Department X and Hydra have been working together for longer than they thought.

"I killed them?" Bucky questions, looking completely horrified.

Rumlow hums. "Let's just say there was an accident."

"You're a monster—there was a child here," Pepper says through gritted teeth.

"Hey, they all served their purposes _beautifully_ until my men and I were able to establish our footing here. Besides you know what they say—the faster they run the better target practice they are,"Rumlow says with a shrug. "Oh, and before we kill all of you, I just wanted you to know that Herr Pierce sends his love." He pulls out the assault rifle that was resting on his back as his men rise to their feet and does the same before opening fire on the Avengers without warning.

Natasha grabs Clint by his arm and pulls him behind one of the man large servers. The two assassin's press their backs as close to the back of the server as they can while listening to the sounds of the other Avengers thinning out the Hydra soldiers. After a few minutes of silence between the two of them, Clint loads an arrow into his bow before charging from behind their cover and firing. Natasha checks her guns before following Clint, shooting several rounds into the fray and easily dispatching the enemy soldiers.

* * *

It doesn't take the Avengers long to defeat Crossbones' army especially since there were only about three dozen people. Bucky dispatches the last soldier, bashing the enemies face in with the shield watching the man fall to the ground before crushing the soldier's windpipe underneath of his boot.

Rumlow pulls himself away from the wall he was propped against. He grins and spreads his arms wide. "I would love to stay and chat some more, but I have other places to be. Trust me when I say: there's more in store for you Avengers and we will meet again. Rumlow pulls out one of the weapons from his thigh holster, which turns out to be a ray gun, and blasts a hole through one of the walls escaping through it before any of the Avengers can make a move.

Bucky tries to go after him but Thor stops his movements by placing a firm hand on the other man's chest. The brunet turns his glare on Thor, silently asking why he was stopped and Thor shakes his head sadly knowing there is nothing they can do at this point. Going after Hydra and Rumlow without of solid plan would end up getting them all killed.

A few minutes after Rumlow left, his words finally register with Natasha. Her eyes widen and her mouth falls open. "Oh no."

"Nat?" Clint asks with a furrowed brow.

"If Pierce and Rumlow have been undercover for what we can assume were their entire Shield careers, then who's to say that they're the only ones."

Clint's eyes widen after a few moments; his mouth falls open and it looks as though he's struggling for breath.

Natasha throws her hand up to her ear and presses the button for the comms. "This is Agent Romanov—does anyone read me? Come in. Director Fury? Agent Hill? Coulson? Does anyone read me?"

There is no response.


	4. SHIELD

**Listening to: Watch Dogs Gameplay (Ghosts of the Past); Sleeping Dogs Gameplay**

**Warning: blood, suicide, panic attack, past trauma, and violence.**

* * *

S.H.I.E.L.D. 

"Nat, what's going on?" Clint asks worry etched into his features.

"No one's answering," she says, feeling panic blossoming within her. "I think Shield's been compromised."

The archer's eyes widen in surprise. "Fuck."

Natasha opens her mouth to voice her agreement at his statement when a loud explosion bursts through the calm of the night and a bright white light streaks through the darkened sky like fireworks.

"What the hell was that?" Pepper asks. Her faceplate is flipped up, which displays her confused expression. "Hydra?"

"We're about to find out," Rhodey says, leading the way out of the warehouse.

The Avengers scatter around the front entrance, looking cautiously around the area for the source of the explosion when Clint gasps and exclaims, "Holy fucking shit!"

Natasha turns and follows the archer's line of sight, eyes locking on the scene in front of her as her entire body freezes. The Helicarrier is on fire, smoke rising from the flames like a signal, visible for all to see as it falls from the sky. Natasha takes a step backwards; her eyes are wide in fear as she watches the place she's known for more than a decade descend to the Earth like a fallen Angel. The loud sound of water parting reaches her ears as the structure crashes into the Delaware River less than thirty minutes from their current location.

"We have to get back to the mansion," Natasha chokes out horrified as the silence of the night surrounds them once again. When no one moves, she adds hurriedly, "Now, we have to get back to the mansion right now."

"Once we get there, JARVIS can lock us," Pepper says, snapping out of her trance. "I have a feeling that Hydra is coming after us next."

Natasha nods. "Pepper, you, Rhodey, Thor, and Hulk head out first. Bucky, Clint, and I will follow in the van and meet you there."

"My friend, what should we do about the base?" Thor asks curiously.

"We'll have to leave it for another day," Natasha decides. As much as she wants to take her time and destroy the base, getting everyone to safety is top priority.

Thor nods his understanding before swinging his hammer and taking off into the night sky. Hulk roars and leaps after Thor. Pepper and Rhodey turn to each other and grin before flipping down their faceplates, starting their jet boosters and following the other two Avengers.

"Let's move," Natasha yells, taking off and reaching the van after a few minutes of running. She throws open the door and climbs into the driver's seat with Clint sliding in next to her and Bucky in back.

Natasha starts the van and flinches at the sound of more explosions nearby. She looks in the review mirror and smiles as she watches Pepper and Rhodey fly away from the former Hydra base. The redhead pulls on her seatbelt and grips the steering wheel tightly before slamming her foot on the gas, peeling away from the curb and following the back roads until she reaches the New Jersey Turnpike, which will take them to I-95 and into New York.

"Hey, we got company," Bucky warns.

Natasha glances into the review mirror and swears under her breath in Russian when she sees seven black Hummers following them. The redhead clenches her jaw, knowing that Hydra won't quit until the Avengers are dead and they have Bucky back. "Take them out," she says in a clipped tone, tightening her grip on the steering wheel and willing the van to go faster.

Bucky unbuckles his belt and slides to the floor, kneeling on the ground as he removes the seat covers and reveals a long black industrial box hidden underneath. He works the latch and opens the box before pulling out the rocket launcher concealed inside, quickly checking the ammo and condition of the weapon. Tony wanted to make sure the Avengers would be safe in the event that they went traveling so he modified the van and let Natasha hide various forms of weaponry inside. The assassin smiles at the memory—that was a fun day for her.

Nat presses the blue button on the steering wheel, which causes both sets of backseats to collapse into the floor of the van. She then presses the purple button, opening the trunk doors giving a clear and obstacle free view of the Hummers behind them.

Bucky lines up the weapon and fires, taking down all but one of the Hummers in a large fiery explosion. Clint rolls down his window and sticks half of his body outside, using an arrow to blow out one of the front tires while Bucky reloads and fires another rocket, which eliminates the final car.

Clint slides back into the car and closes his window before sagging against the back of his seat. Natasha presses the purple and blue buttons again, closing the trunk and raising the seats. Bucky puts away the rocket launcher, securing it in the black box before replacing the cushions on top of it. He sits back down and slides on his seatbelt.

"Think that's the last of them?" the archer asks after a few moments of collective silence.

Bucky shakes his head. "I doubt it. We need to get back to the mansion as soon as possible. I have a feeling Hydra already knows we're going there, but right now, it's the safest place for us."

"I'm working on it," Natasha says, checking the mirror and feeling relieved when she sees no one behind them.

"Can you hurry it up please? By the time we get there I'm actually going to look my age."

Natasha lets out a loud snort while Clint bursts into laughter (whether at Bucky's words or her reaction she has no idea). The assassin grins and bites down on her lower lip to prevent an embarrassing giggle from escaping. She glances into the review mirror and watches Bucky look confused for a moment before shrugging and leaning back against his seat. His hair is glowing in the early morning light and Natasha wishes she had Steve's artistic ability because Bucky looks breathtaking.

She breezes through the tolls with their E-Z Pass (which Tony was kind enough to buy for each one of their vehicles) and they reach the George Washington Bridge, which will take them into Manhattan. As they cross the bridge, she notices several workers hanging to the side of the bridge attached to bungee cables and wires.

Clint hums. "I didn't realize they were doing construction today."

Bucky makes a noise in response, brow furrowed as he watches the workers with unmasked suspicion. "They're not—It's Hydra. They're wiring the bridge to explode."

"What?" Natasha exclaims, horrified.

"Hydra probably has every route into the city compromised," Bucky adds.

"The Tunnels are the quickest way in from New Jersey despite the fact they're frequently backed up," Natasha says. "This bridge must have been Hydra's second play because they're still setting the charges.

"Oh my god, there are so many civilians," Clint says, sounding hollow. "Nat, we have to warn them."

"How?" she exclaims loudly.

"There's no time, we have to—" Bucky's cut off by the sound of several loud explosions, which causes the bridge to shake and rock violently to the left as the sound of breaking concrete reaches their ears.

Panic rises in Natasha as she slams her foot to the floor and expertly swerves the van between every car in front of her as the bridge collapses behind them, barely making it to the other side. Nat listens to Bucky let out a relieved breath and Clint a hollowed gasp before glancing into the review mirror, watching the rest of the Bridge fall into the water, wishing there was some way they could have saved all of those civilians.

* * *

Natasha doesn't let up on the gas as she weaves through the busy streets of New York, making sure to be careful not to accidentally hit any onlookers gazing at the empty space where the George Washington Bridge previously resided. She reaches Avengers mansion and swerves into the underground garage while JARVIS automatically locks down the mansion behind them.

The assassin half ass parks the van before yanking the keys out of the ignition. She throws open her door and rushes into the mansion. "Pepper?" she calls, worried. She has no idea if her teammates made it back okay because they almost didn't.

"In the kitchen," the woman responds, sounding relieved.

Nat walks into the kitchen and finds their teammates, along with Hill, Fury, and Coulson all sitting around the dining table. The Shield Agents are covered with various cuts and bruises and at first glance, the only serious injury seems to be Coulson's broken left arm, which is already in a cast and sling. Hill is wrapping her wrist in gaze while Bruce is tending to a large cut covering the side of Fury's face. The Director tries to wave off Bruce, which causes the man to frown. He picks up a clean pad and dabs it with some more alcohol before continuing to treat Fury, who sighs in surrender.

"What's going on?" Natasha demands as she sits down in the empty chair on Pepper's left while Clint sits next to her. Pepper slides over a cup of tea, which Natasha takes and offers a nod in thanks.

"There are traitors at Shield," Fury says, immediately getting to the point, which is something that Natasha has always liked about the Director.

"Hydra?" Bucky asks, setting the shield on the kitchen table and plopping down in the chair on Pepper's right, which is across from Fury.

The Director nods. "And that isn't even the worst part. It turns out that Shield has been corrupted since its founding."

"Zola?" Bucky questions, his mouth drawn into a thin line.

Fury nods, his face grim.

"Before we were attacked and forced to retreat the Helicarrier, I discovered that there are Hydra Bases, both active and inactive, located around the world that need to be eradicated," Coulson explains. "I don't have exact locations, but if I could borrow a computer, I can figure that out. I do know for sure that both the Frederick and Holdrege bases are eliminated."

"And Tavistock," Pepper adds with a small smile on her face. "Rhodey and I doubled back."

Coulson nods. "Right, so three bases out of a to-be-determined total."

"You know what I don't get," Clint begins. "Why Pierce didn't do something sooner? You know, why wait until now."

"Skull probably told him not to," Bucky says. "He wouldn't want to risk someone else taking out Captain America."

"Did you fight Skull?" Hill asks. She's finished wrapping her wrist and both of her hands are resting clasped on the table top as she regards Bucky with a curious expression.

Bucky shakes his head. "Not personally—I died, remember. Steve did though and he told me about it."

"What were they like back then? Hydra, that is," Coulson asks.

"They were ruthless to put it simply," Bucky begins with a faraway look in his eyes. "They tortured and killed anyone who opposed them—no one stood a chance. But Steve . . . I remember this one time we were taking out a base in Czechoslovakia and this was probably the hardest base we've ever encountered. There was swarm after swarm of heavily armored enemies and we honestly thought that we were going to die for sure this time. This battle went on forever and when we finally got down to the last few guys Steve went . . . he went down and my mind just went completely blank. I don't know who took out the last few soldiers; all I remember is running to Steve's side screaming that I would kill him if he died."

Bucky pauses in his tale, moving to run his thumb along the edge of the shield before taking a breath and continuing. "Anyway, we get him back to our camp and into the medical tent and the doctor's work on him for hours. I wanted to go inside, but I was refused because I wasn't family or some bullshit when we were labeled as each other's next of kin. Dum Dum had a flask on him and we passed it around and tried to cope with the fact that our Captain was in that tent _dying_ and there was nothing we could do. There was nothing _I _could do."

"The Doctors came out hours later and told us Steve was going to be fine and that he already started healing but he was still asleep. We immediately piled into his tent and crowded around his bed, waiting for him to wake up which he obviously did. He looked over at me and asked if he collapsed at work again and I—I don't think I've ever been more relieved in my life. I let out the most embarrassing combination of a laugh and a sob and threatened to punch him. Steve did nothing but grin like the cheeky bastard he was. Morita offered to by drinks at our favorite bar, only the first round though."

He pauses again and gives the shield a fond look. "At that point, I wasn't really listening anymore because Steve was looking at me and he was alive and I thought, "Maybe we could actually do this—defeat Hydra, win the war, and go back to Brooklyn. Maybe we could come out of this alive." Two weeks later we got a call saying that Zola traveling to Austria via a train and we needed to capture him alive to find out where Skull is."

Bucky shakes his head and continues talking about his time with Commandos, not stopping despite him becoming visibly upset and stressed the more he speaks. Natasha and the others know how much Steve's death affected him but she never realized how much he was still suffering until now. Natasha can't even begin to imagine losing her closet friend—losing Clint, the one person who completely understands her in every way.

She briefly wonders if this is what it was like for Steve when Bucky died during the war. The blond once mentioned (on one of those rare instances when he would talk about the past) that he couldn't stop crying into a bottle of alcohol that he couldn't get drunk from, wishing that Bucky would come up to him and say _"Whatcha crying for punk? I'm all right." _Natasha didn't know what to do after that revelation, except hold Steve while he cried and repeated Bucky's name like a sacred mantra.

"You know," Fury says after a few moments of silence and pulling Nat from her thoughts. "We could use someone with your expertise leading this fight—"

"I will _never _fight for you. I will never take up the Shield and I will not become Captain America because the truth is, I never liked Captain America," Bucky declares, cutting of Fury's words and glaring at the man. "The government—Howard, Peggy, Philips, Erskine, the lot of 'em—all had a hand in turning _my best friend_ into a guinea pig for them to use and throw away when he could no longer give them what they wanted. I joined the Commandos was because I was following Steve. Me and him til the end of the line—that was our thing except one of us keeps dying before the other."

A tense silence follows Bucky's words and Natasha watches the man take a shaky breath as he turns his gaze to the table, his eyes looking glossy with unshed tears. The redhead turns to glance at Fury, who is wearing an unidentifiable expression, but Nat can see in his posture that he's going to drop the Captain America subject after what Bucky just revealed.

She turns her head to look back at Bucky, who is now shaking and biting down hard on his bottom lip. She takes a sip of her tea, watching as Pepper tries to comfort Bucky only to have her concerns politely brushed aside, making a note to have a discussion with the other Avengers about keeping a closer eye on Bucky. After today, she wants to make sure he's both mentally and physically stable before they begin the fight to take down Hydra once and for all.

* * *

"Does anyone else have the sudden urge to play poker?" Clint asks after finding a pack of cards in one of the kitchen cabinets twenty minutes after dinner.

"I think it's just you," Bruce says.

"You know in my day, before I joined Shield that is, I was a champion poker player," Fury says.

"No offence sir, but back in your day Henry the Eighth was creating the Church of England," the archer responds while shuffling the cards in his hands.

Fury raises an eyebrow, looking amused. "Are you saying I'm old?"

"No, I'm just saying that the game has changed since then. Think you can handle it?"

"I was the Director of Shield for twenty years; I can handle it. What are we betting?"

Clint grins. "Five hundred?"

"Deal."

"Everyone! Come one, come all! I want as many people as possible to watch me wipe the floor with Fury."

Rhodey snorts. "Don't you mean people to prevent you from killing the Director once he hands you your ass."

Clint scoffs while Fury grins. "Thanks for the backup man."

"That's what I'm here for," Rhodey responds with a shrug and a cheeky smile.

"Everyone's here except for Bucky," Pepper says, looking up from her book and taking a quick glance around the room. "He said the memories of his past and Steve were becoming too much so he went to lie down."

"You want me to check on him?" Natasha asks.

Pepper nods. "Yeah, I checked on him half an hour ago. I think he was sleeping."

When Bucky went upstairs, Natasha brought up her concerns and her teammates agreed that they should keep an eye on him without making it obvious. They all knew that they would eventually be found out, seeing as Bucky is a soldier _and_ a master assassin, but for now, they're comforted in the fact that JARVIS can keep an eye on him in addition to the Avengers checking on him every half an hour in rotation.

"While you're up there, see if he wants to join," Clint says as he begins dealing the cards.

"Why? So he can make fun you when you lose too?" Natasha says with a small smirk. Clint lightly shoves her before she stands, carrying her cup and empty plate over to the sink setting the objects inside.

She exits the kitchen and takes the elevator to the third floor, exiting the device and making her way to Bucky's room. The redhead knocks on the man's door and is met with silence. She assumes he is still sleeping and quietly opens the door before stepping into his room. Nat glances around the room before her entire body freezes, her lips parting with a gasp.

Bucky is lying on his back, sprawled and unmoving, on the floor near his bed. His hair is spread around his head like a halo, skin pale, and wearing the same clothes from earlier. Bucky's metal fingers are still curled slightly around the silenced pistol resting against the palm of his hand while blood drips down the side of his face from the single gunshot wound to his head.

Natasha's eyes widen with unshed tears as her hands fly to cover her mouth to stop a sob from escaping. She slowly backs out of the room keeping her eyes locked on Bucky's still form unable to look away. Nat hits the wall and slowly slides to the floor—she's violently shaking, her breath coming in labored pants as her heart threatens to pound out of her chest. She lowers her hands from her mouth intending to tell JARVIS calmly to get the others, but instead, she screams.


	5. Lost

**Listening to: Sleeping Dogs Gameplay (The Wedding; Final Kill; Buried Alive)**

**Warning for: death, past events, past trauma, slight gore, and suicide**

* * *

Lost

Bucky's funeral was a somber and intimate affair with only the Avengers, Hill, Fury, and Coulson in attendance. They had him buried in Arlington National Cemetery in the empty lot on Steve's left. The Avengers had wanted to bury Tony next to Steve as well, but they weren't allowed because Tony wasn't a veteran. Instead, they buried him in New York next to his former butler, JARVIS, seeing as he had always looked up to the man and thought of him as a father figure.

Natasha takes a shaky breath, as she looks down at Bucky's grave. It didn't take long for the team to reach her once she discovered Bucky's body (they must have heard her scream). Clint and Pepper were immediately by her side as Natasha tried processing everything from her place on the floor, dried tear marks on her face and her bottom lip still quivering. Rhodey, Bruce, Thor, Fury, Hill, and Coulson were the ones to go into Bucky's room. Bruce knelt by his side and checked Bucky's pulse confirming that he was dead _("Estimated time of death approximately fifteen minutes ago via a self-inflicted gunshot wound," Bruce had said before his face fell. "He's still warm.")._

Fury had gently removed the gun from Bucky's fingers while Coulson, Rhodey, and Hill laid one of Bucky's sheet over the latter's eerily still form _(He was always moving—whether it was his entire body or just a finger idly tracing over the furniture. Steve said he could never sit still even when they were younger)_. Thor knelt beside Bucky's head once the sheet was in place, whispering a quiet prayer in his language. Normally, Natasha would be ecstatic at hearing another language especially once that she doesn't know but she can barely register his words for all she can think about is why JARVIS didn't say anything.

She raised her concerns with the team once Bucky's door was closed and the Avengers were back in the kitchen, with Natasha tucked against Pepper's side and a warm cup of coffee in her hands. Bruce had furrowed his brow and grabbed a nearby laptop before discovering that JARVIS was offline. Rhodey took the laptop from Bruce and quickly brought the AI back online since he was the only one who knew how _(Tony had taught him how JARVIS had worked one day when he was bored. At the time, Rhodey didn't care too much, seeing as he had just returned from a fifteen hour shift at the base, but now he's glad he paid attention). _

The AI whirled back to life and immediately expressed his regrets for not being able to notify the team about Bucky's condition. The team doesn't blame JARVIS and express as much before asking it what happened to Bucky. The AI informed that Bucky had woken up from a nightmare crying and calling for Steve. Bucky had asked JARVIS where the other man was but before the AI could answer, Bucky realized Steve was dead and cried harder. He jumped from his bed and paced around the room with his arms curled around himself and repeating, _"I can't do this anymore—not without him."_ JARVIS insisted that Bucky should call for help, and the man responded by disabling the AI (but not the hidden cameras stationed throughout the mansion).

JARVIS had paused and quickly reviewed the footage without showing the team and states that Bucky pretended to be asleep when Pepper checked on him, loading his gun and shooting himself after she was gone. Fifteen minutes later, Natasha found his body.

Natasha curls her hand into a fist as she continues starting at the grave, body shaking from barely suppressed emotions. There are so many things that she never told him because the information she has could have possibly broken up the team. She was desperate not to be the one who chased Bucky away and risk Steve becoming cross with her so she hid her feelings behind a carefully placed mask but now all she can think about in the three days since he died are all of the missed opportunities and chances at happiness because she—

She's snapped out of her thoughts by a warm, calloused hand lightly brushing against hers. "It's not your fault, Nat," Clint says in a gentle tone.

Nat shakes her head in disagreement without looking at him. They both know that's not true.

Natasha takes one last look at Bucky's grave before moving away from Clint and kneeling in front of Steve's grave, eyes scanning over each of the letters carved into the stone. She gulps at the wave of emotions running through her body as tears well in her eyes. She places the palm of her left hand against the top of Steve's grave and bows her head.

"I'm sorry," she says in a broken whisper. "I'm so fucking sorry."

Familiar fingers lace through hers on top of the gravestone before a warm, heavy arm is settled over her shoulders. She opens her eyes (when did she close them?) and looks at Clint who is now kneeling next to her, expression pinched and blue eyes wide with regret.

He doesn't say anything; he just nods head and gently tugs Nat closer. She comes willingly, burying her face into his neck. He smells like cheap aftershave and mint chewing gum, but it's home to her and she's overwhelmed with the feeling of safety that she finally lets go and breaks down in public, her body shaking with sobs as tears stream down her cheeks. She feels Clint shift slightly, burying one of his hands in her hair and gently stroking the strands.

"I hope they're together," Natasha says, voice broken and watery.

"Who?" Clint responds, his voice a low rumble she can feel through her entire body.

It takes her a few minutes to get herself under control before she can respond. She sniffles and raises one of her hand to wipe at her eyes and nose. "Tony, Steve, and Bucky; wherever they are, I hope they're together."

Clint nudges his nose against the top of Natasha's head, which causes the barest hint of a smile to cross her lips. "I know they are."

* * *

Natasha finds herself lying wide awake in bed that night, staring blankly at the wall with a numb feeling wrapped around her like a blanket on a cold winter's evening. She feels as if she's been trapped in a daze ever since the Avengers returned from the mansion, interacting with the team and completing her nightly routine in a robotic fashion. Pepper told her that she was thinking about watching some of the old Captain America reels she found amongst Tony's things after dinner, but Natasha decided to go to sleep instead. She doesn't feel like she's ready to look at a video of Bucky especially so soon after losing him (_she had only just started going through her photos of Tony and Steve, remembering all the fun times they had and the two of them have been gone for over a year). _

Pepper had looked worried about Natasha being alone after what Bucky had done, but she relented mainly because Natasha doesn't know how to disable JARVIS. Dinner was severed not long after their conversation and Natasha quickly polished off her meal and went upstairs, catching Clint's concerned glance and the beginning of a conversation about sleeping arrangements _(Fury, Hill, and Coulson decided to cram themselves in the only spare room for they didn't feel right sleeping in Steve and Tony, or Bucky's). _

She forces herself to break her train of thought and rolls onto her back, staring at the ceiling through the darkness of the room. "JARVIS," she whispers after a few moments of internally debating with herself in silence. "Are you awake?"

A whirring sound fills the room before the AI speaks. _"Yes, Mistress Romanov?"_

"Why do my friends keep dying?" she asks, voice sounding far off as her mind shows flashing images of her past. "Every time I get close to someone or feel like they keep me safe, they die." The only person who hasn't left her is Clint and if something ever happened to him, Natasha would be ruined.

JARVIS remains silent as it processes Natasha's words and she waits patiently for its response._ "I do not know how to respond,"_ the AI answers honestly. _"Perhaps it is an unfortunate series of events that have to be played out."_

Natasha purses her lips. "Maybe it's that destiny or fate thing that Thor talks about thought I don't understand why they got the short end of the stick—they all suffered so much, hell Bucky was brainwashed and treated like a puppet for seventy years. Why them?" She can feel her body beginning to tense with unreleased anger. Natasha squeezes her eyes shut and takes several deep breaths, forcing herself to relax.

The AI is silent for a few moments. _"Forgive me, Mistress Romanov, but I do not have the answer to that question. Sir once said that everything happens for a reason and sometimes, horrific things happen to those that do not deserve it. I believe the only thing we can do as survivors is make sure their deaths are not in vain."_

Natasha slowly opens her eyes, feeling more like herself as she allows JARVIS's words to sink in. She won't be any good for her team if she allows herself to be consumed with her grief. No matter how much she wants to, the past cannot be changed. All she can do is move forward and channel her emotions to the people who deserve it the most: Hydra.

Hydra has taken everything: her home, her friends, and her sense of control. Natasha's compromised, her _team_ is compromised, but she knows damn well that she won't stop. They will avenge their fallen comrades and once Natasha is done with them, the world will never see Hydra again.

With this new goal in mind, Natasha nods her head even though the AI can't see the movement (or at least Nat thinks it can't). "Thank you, JARVIS," she says in a quiet yet grateful tone.

"_I am proud to be of assistance,"_ JARVIS responds. _"Is there anything else you require?"_

Natasha thinks for a moment. "No, I'm alright now."

JARVIS doesn't respond. Natasha rolls back onto her side, curling in on herself before wrapping the blankets tighter around her form and burying her face into her pillow. Sleep comes much easier to her and she falls away from the world with a slight smirk on her lips. Hydra doesn't know what's coming.

* * *

A loud beeping sound cuts through the blankness of Natasha's mind. She slowly opens her eyes and glares at her alarm clock, which woke her at nine-thirty in the morning. She sighs and slowly uncurls herself from her burrito of blankets to shut off the offending object and silence accompanies the room once again. Natasha yawns and stretches her limbs before rolling onto her back. She stares at the ceiling for a few moments before the events of the past few days reinsert themselves into the forefront of her conscious mind, leaving her with a hollow feeling.

Natasha sighs again and rises from her bed before showering and changing into a thin white t-shirt and a pair of black leggings. She pads from her room with bare feet, taking the elevator down to the first level and quickly locates her team sitting around the dining room table. She takes the vacant chair between Clint and Bruce, settling down and tucking on her legs underneath of her body as she scans her teammates.

Fury, Coulson, and Hill are typing on their computers, looking at their screens with such focus that Natasha wonders what they're doing exactly. Pepper is drinking a cup of coffee and having a quiet conversation with Rhodey, Bruce is messing with his tablet, Clint is listening to his music too loudly as always, and Thor is on his phone. Natasha has a feeling he's talking to his girlfriend. Ever since Steve showed Thor how to use a phone, he's been constantly texting Jane, who has been working in London for the past year and a half (Thor relayed that Jane had wanted to visit New York again, but she doesn't think she'll be able to any time soon).

The team sits in a silence that is not quite tense but not compatible. After some time, Natasha rises from her seat and moves quietly around the kitchen, making steaming cups of tea for everyone in addition to a fresh pot of coffee Pepper, Rhodey, and Fury. When she's finished, she sits in her chair in the same position from earlier, mug settled in her hands as she takes a sip, feeling the warm liquid soothing her body.

A loud pinging noise breaks through the silent atmosphere surrounding the Avengers. Natasha is thankful for the interruption for her thoughts were beginning to drift down a dark path consisting of revenge and regret _(She lived her youth in that state and she's not sure if she wants to go way again but she has a feeling that she'll have to in order to take down Hydra for good)_.

"Goodness!" Pepper exclaims, placing a hand over her chest in an attempt to calm her racing heart.

"Sorry," Hill says. "I thought the volume on my computer was turned off."

"Message?" Fury asks, looking up from his monitor to glance at Hill curiously.

"Yeah, one of my contacts just sent me an email. Let me check it . . ." Hill says, trailing off as she scans her computer screen, eyes widening with every second. She blows out a harsh breath and looks over at her boss. "I just received information about a Hydra base, and one that looks like it's been active for years.

"Shit, really?" Clint asks as hope and dread seep into his tone.

Hill nods her head before turning back to her computer and quickly typing a response, most likely asking for coordinates.

Natasha leans forward, sliding her empty mug to the side and bracing her elbows on the table. "Where is it?"

"Deep in Siberia," Hill responds without looking away from her computer screen. "The closest town is Zima."

Natasha freezes, her muscles drawn taunt and body tense. That's the same town where they initially found Bucky during the first trial and the same place where she received her training before she joined the KGB. It was bad enough having to return to Zima the first time and complete a trial while being overrun with memories from her past, now she has to go back and take down Hydra? She left Russia to escape from her past and it seems the universe is hell bent on bringing her back.

Natasha clenches and unclenches her jaw before rising to her feet. "I'm going," she declares, pushing back her instincts that are screaming at her to stay behind.

"You want to storm the base?" Clint questions, sounding appalled. "Nat, this isn't your style."

"Three of our friends have been killed because of Hydra, Clint, I will not lose another," she says, not bothering to hold back the bite in her words.

Clint leans back in his chair, his eyes unsure and mouth drawn into a tight line. "When do we leave?"

"As soon as JARVIS finishes the updates to our armor," Pepper says before checking her phone. "It's looks like they'll be complete in approximately one hour."

Bruce nods. "That gives us plenty of time to change and eat because I know none of us have had anything yet."

"My friends we must prepare ourselves for this battle with be long and treacherous, but I believe we can be victorious," Thor says. "We have one thing that Hydra does not possess."

"Good looks?" Clint offers.

"Faith," Thor responds, tone gentle and firm. "Both in our individual abilities and each other. That is how we will be victorious against Hydra."

A small smile crosses Natasha's face at Thor's words. He's right—first and foremost, the Avengers are a team. They may be little and broken now, but they know and care for each other in a way that Hydra will never understand.

"I'm going with you and that is not up for debate," Hill says as she closes her laptop. "I'll fly the jet and be able to provide air support and an evacuation if needed."

Natasha hums before nodding in response. She forces herself to settle back into her chair and clasp her hands together on top of the wooden surface. "We need a plan."

A smirk crawls over Hill's features. "Well, it just so happens that I am an expert at plans."

* * *

Hill lands the Quinjet just outside of Zima after a long, silent flight. The Avengers climb off the jet after Pepper thanks Hill for the lift. Natasha walks a few paces away from the jet, looking out at the snow-covered landscape as she thinks over the plan.

This is a routine stealth operation. Take out the snipers; upload a flash drive, which contains a virus that will create a back door into the system so Fury and Coulson can give Avengers access to the base layout, directly into a power box that will be located outside on the ground level of the base. Once they have access, the Avengers will sneak in and disable the alarms and communications. After that, it's open season.

The sound of the Quinjet starting up again pulls Natasha from her thoughts. She watches as the jet hovers above the ground, landing gear disappearing back into it before Hill steers the Quinjet back into the sky. Natasha feels a hand on her shoulder and turns to look at Clint, who jerks his head in the direction of the town. She lets her eyes roam over his features before nodding her head in response.

The Avengers start making their way towards Zima as snow begins falling around them. Natasha pulls her heavy coat closer, thankful that Bruce remembered to grab their winter gear since they haven't restocked the Quinjet in ages. The further they walk, the more conditions worsen with the wind picking up and snow falling at much steadier pace. Natasha squints her eyes and angles her head downwards against the brightness of the white blanket surrounding them.

"Guys, I think we're moving into a whiteout," Rhodey says. "Soon we're going to lose all visibility so be careful."

"Everyone join hands," Clint says before grabbing Natasha's hand with his right and Bruce's with his left. "That way we won't get lost."

"Good idea, Clint," Natasha says as she joins hands with Thor, his larger fingers curling around her much smaller ones.

"According to my thermal scan, Zima is about five minutes from your current location," Hill informs. "Locate a shack and stay there until the storm passes; it's too dangerous for you to be out for too long."

Personally, Natasha thinks that these conditions are ideal for stealth especially since she found a few pairs of thermal goggles on the Quinjet. Sure, their enemies will probably have both thermal goggles and scopes, but they still won't be expecting anyone to hit them in the middle of a whiteout. Luckily, for Natasha, she loves defying expectations.

The Avengers reach Zima as the whiteout hits its peak, wind blowing the snow in every direction as visibility has become nonexistent. The only reason they know they've arrived in the village is because the nearly run into the side of one of the buildings. Thor leads the way into the shack by busting open the lock with his hammer. Everyone scatters in the building, releasing each other's hands and wandering around the shack, making sure the area is secure.

"What are we going to do now," Pepper asks, setting the suitcase with her armor inside on the ground before plopping down next to it.

"We're going to do to the base, well I am anyway," Natasha says as she reaches into one of the pouches on her utility belt, pulling out one of the pairs of thermal vision goggles and sliding them over her head.

Pepper raises an eyebrow. "Agent Hill told us to stay put."

"Yes, but Agent Hill didn't grow up in these conditions, I did. As long as we tread carefully and use our silenced weapons, we'll be fine," Natasha says before pulling out two more pairs of goggles. "Who's coming with me?"

Clint walks over and takes a pair out of Natasha's hands before sliding them over his face. "You know I got your back."

Rhodey walks over, taking the last pair of goggles from her. "I've run more stealth operations during my army career than you can count. I got you covered."

Nat smiles and nods her confirmation. "Bases in this area are usually divided into three buildings with at least four snipers on each of the roofs in addition to soldiers patrolling the perimeter. Hill, did you get all of that?"

"Yes," she responds. "I don't like this, but nothing I say will stop you, will it?"

Natasha grins. "Nope."

"Alright. I'm flying over the base now and will send the thermal scan of the area to your phones," Hill says. "In ideal conditions, it appears as though you're a thirty minute walk away but it will probably take you closer to two hours in this this weather."

"Sounds about right; thank you."

"No problem, just be careful."

"We will," Natasha says before looking back to her team. "If we don't contact you within twelve hours, assume we've been compromised and come to the base. Everyone keep your comms on and radio if you need backup."

"We'll make this our rendezvous point and keep the area secured," Pepper says as she gestures to herself, Bruce, and Thor.

Natasha nods her head. "Twelve hours."

"Twelve hours," Pepper repeats.

Natasha gives the woman a tight smile before turning to Rhodey and Clint, who are waiting patiently, bodies tensed and eyes determined. She jerks her head towards the front door. "Let's move."

* * *

**A/N: If you've never experienced a whiteout, I'm using this video as a reference and it will help give you some idea: "COD: Modern Warfare 2: Cliffhanger" Gameplay by Attila16.**


	6. Her

**A/N: Once again, I referenced the video at the end of the last chapter for preforming a stealth operation in whiteout conditions**

**Warning: past trauma, torture, mentions of brainwashing, blood, and gore.**

* * *

Her

Natasha opens the front door and steps out of the shack, walking onto the porch and staring into the white nothingness surrounding them. By her calculations, the whiteout is at its peak and while this operation will be difficult, getting an advantage over Hydra has never been more important. The sooner the Avengers strike, the sooner they can take down the organization for good. She slides her thermal goggles over her eyes as Clint and Rhodey exit the shack. The men move to stand on either side of Natasha as they gaze out at the invisible landscape.

"Ready?" she asks.

"As we'll ever be," Rhodey responds.

Natasha nods despite knowing the other two won't be able to see the motion. She laces her fingers with Rhodey and Clint's before giving their hands a quick squeeze. "Don't let go of my hands—it's easy to get lost during one of these. We'll stick together until we reach the base. Agent Hill, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear," she responds. "I'll scout ahead and let you know what's coming."

"Alright," Natasha says. She takes a quick breath before stepping off the porch and into the storm, with Rhodey and Clint matching her careful pace.

Despite what she implied to Pepper and the rest of the team, there was only one other time when Natasha was forced into conditions. She and Katerina had just finished a mission and were caught in a whiteout while trying to go to the extraction point. When the storm rolled in, their handlers radioed in for them to go to the nearest safe house and remain there until the weather cleared. They passed the time in the hidden cabin by talking about the mission, playing cards, and fucking. Natasha lost her virginity to Katerina and discovered that she enjoyed being with a woman as she does with a man.

She shakes her head in an attempt to clear her mind. Ever since she talked to Katerina last week, she's found her thoughts running back towards the past—a past she hasn't consciously thought of since the first trial. She licks her wind-chapped lips and briefly wonders what Russia has in store for her.

* * *

"Alright, you're just outside the base," Hill says after what feels like a year of walking.

Natasha looks up ahead and sees the rough outline of three buildings in addition to the heat signatures of several soldiers. She nudges Rhodey and the three of them move to duck behind a nearby rock.

"There are fourteen men in total—six snipers and eight foot soldiers," Hill says. "There are two snipers on each of the three buildings; the soldiers on the ground are patrolling in pairs. The buildings themselves are close enough that you can jump from one roof to the other if needed."

"Yeah, if you're Captain America," Clint mutters under his breath.

"I'll take care of the snipers and leave the soldiers on the ground to you," Hill says. After a few minutes, six silenced and precise shots are barely audible over the sound of the wind. "They're down."

Natasha carefully scans the perimeter. "We need to get to the roof of that building up ahead. We can use it as a vantage point to better observe the area and take out the rest.

"We move on three," Rhodey says before taking a brief pause. "Three."

Rhodey leads the way out of the cover, taking slow and precise movements. When they reach the building, he pauses in front of the ladder and looks around. "Natasha, you go up first," he says before letting go of her hand.

Natasha slips her fingers from Clint's before gripping the ladder in both hands and climbing up. She pokes her head over the edge of the roof and sees both snipers dead. Nat finishes her ascent and places her hand over the comms. "Guys, it's clear. Come up."

Clint and Rhodey join her on the roof after a few minutes. Together, they slowly lie flat on the surface and low crawl towards the opposite side, peering over the edge when they arrive. The group of three carefully watches the soldiers patrol, cataloging their positions and patterns.

"Is this a good spot?" Nat asks.

"Yeah; I'll be able to get clean shots if needed," the archer says.

Natasha hears the sound of a pistol's safety being taken off before Rhodey addresses her. "You ready to go down?"

"Ready spaghetti."

"_Nat,"_ Clint says with a groan. "That wasn't funny the first twelve times you said it."

"Yet, I can bet that you're smiling right now," she says while wearing a grin of her own. She reaches over and pats Clint on what she hopes is his back before turning around and crawling back to the ladder. Rhodey descends first and she follows when he says the area is clear. Once on the ground, she and Rhodey split up. He goes left and she goes right.

Natasha hugs the side of the building, crouched low and peeking her head around the corner when she reaches the edge watching as two soldiers walk away from her. She waits until they stop in front of a snow pile before making her move. Keeping low, she pulls out dual blades, twirling them around her fingers before clasping them tight in her hands. She slowly approaches the men remaining hidden in the whiteout while the two chatter in Russian. As soon as she's behind them she strikes, jumping on their backs and jamming her knives in their throats before they can scream. She gently eases back down to the ground, bringing the bodies with her. Nat wipes off her knives and sheaves them before moving the bodies to the side and carefully rearranging them under snow. When that's complete, she returns to the side of the building and calls it in.

"That's two down," Natasha says, her fingers hovering over one of her guns.

"Two are down for me as well," Rhodey announces.

"Alright, Rhodey there's two more guys ahead of you. Go forwards five feet and turn, they'll be on your left. Natasha, stay along the edge of the building and make a right. Follow the wall until you reach the other side and make a left—they'll be right in front of you," Clint informs.

Natasha lowers her hands from her comms and pulls out her knives again, following Clint's instructions until she reaches the other pair of soldiers. She moves the same as before, sneaking up on the soldiers before knifing them both in their throats. She wipes and sheaves her knives before hiding the bodies in a pair of trashcans nearby.

"My side is clear," Natasha says.

"Clear on my end," Rhodey says.

"The area is completely secured according to my scans," Hill states. "I'm going to contact the team and send them your status and location. In the meantime, rendezvous with Barton on the roof and remain there until the others arrive."

"Understood," Natasha says. She turns to leave when she sees something jutting out of the wall next to her. Upon closer inspection, she notes that it looks like some sort of power box. Removing the cover, she reveals a series of breakers, electrical wires, and USB ports. "Hey, I think I found a way to upload the flash drive. There's a power box outside one of the buildings with a USB port."

"Go ahead," Hill says.

Natasha reaches into her pocket and carefully pulls out the flash drive before sliding it into one of the ports. Even though the area is clear, Natasha glances around just to be safe. Some habits are hard to break.

"I have word from Fury that they're in the system," Hill says after a few moments.

"Natasha, I'm coming in on your three," Rhodey says. Seconds after he finishes speaking, he slowly comes around the side of the building, gun in hand clasped in his hands. He slides over and kneels next to Natasha, who is still crouched on the ground.

She smiles in greeting before realizing that he won't be able to see the gesture. "Nice of you to join me."

"My other plans fell through so I figured, why not."

Natasha's smile widens.

"Guys, this isn't a Hydra base," Hill says slowly and Natasha imagines the woman's brow is lowered in confusion as she tries to process what's in front of her. "This is Department X, specifically the Infamous Red Room."

Natasha's smile slowly turns into a dangerous smirk. She's going to enjoy this immensely.

* * *

"So, who are we dealing with exactly?" Pepper asks. The other three Avengers have just arrived on location and met up with Natasha, Rhodey, and Clint on the roof.

"Department X, the same people we dealt with during the first trial," Natasha explains. "Winter Soldier was the leader of the Spetsnaz until we rescued him. I have no doubt in my mind that Lukin has doubled, if not tripled, the amount of soldiers in his charge."

"So what do we do?" Bruce asks.

"The alarms for every building are all connected to the same system, which is a terrible idea," Hill interjects. "Well, terrible for them and excellent for us. Once the alarms are turned off, none of the buildings can call for assistance from the others."

"Clint and I will go into this building below us and disable the alarms," Natasha says. "The rest of you wait until for our signal. Once we call it in, eliminate the other two buildings in whatever way you see fit." She taps Clint, who is next to her, on the arm three times, which is their signal for starting the mission.

Once on the ground, it doesn't take the assassins long to get into base after slipping in through a back door. They immediately duck for cover behind a large crate nearby before scanning the area. There's a lone soldier standing at the end of the long hallway that leads into the depths of the base; Natasha doesn't see anyone with him, but she's not naïve to believe that he's alone in this corridor.

"Bruce, you got anything for us?" Clint asks over the comms.

"It looks like the control room is on the third level according to the schematics Fury sent me," Bruce says. "According to him, JARVIS has the cameras on a thirty second loop. From what I can see, there are about thirty soldiers between your current location and destination, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility of more.

Clint doesn't respond to Bruce, instead he looks over at Natasha. "You ready?"

Natasha nods her head before the pair cautiously makes their way through the base, taking care into memorizing the guard's routes so they can slip by without alerting any of them. There was one instance where they were passing by a sleeping guard with no cover around them when a loud banging noise that sounded like someone dropping something resonated throughout the structure. The assassins froze in place, hands hovering over their weapons as they watched the guard with slight panic, ready to move at a moment's notice.

By some miracle, he didn't wake up.

Once they left that room, they were able to make it to the control room without an incident. Clint locks the door while Natasha goes over to the keyboard and disables the alarms.

"It's done," she announces over the comms. "Attack the other two bases when you're ready."

The sounds of explosions cut through the silence of the base almost immediately after Natasha finishes speaking. She hums and turns to Clint who is grinning and staring at the monitors. After a few minutes of silence, she says, "You want to go down and say hi?"

"Aw, you remembered how much I love making an entrance," Clint says as his grin widens.

She follows Clint from the control room and they quickly take down the soldiers on the third floor. They walk over to the stairwell and peer over the edge, watching the soldiers move around on the floors below them. Clint loads an arrow into his bow and aims it towards the ground level. He fires the arrow into a group of soldiers on the second floor, smiling when the arrow explodes and knocks back several enemies. Nat pulls out her pistol and fires several rounds at the soldiers looking up in their direction, picking off the enemies before they can shout for help. When all the soldiers on the second floor are eliminated, she motions to Clint and they slowly move downstairs before implementing the same method on the first floor.

Natasha takes down the last soldier before seeing a blur move out of the corner of her eye. "Clint, there's a runner. Come on, we need to catch up with them. They might have Intel," she says before taking off down the stairs to her right. She and Clint chase the lone soldier into a nearby room, blocking the doorway and aiming their weapons at the person's back. "Put your hands in the air and turn around slowly."

The soldier wordlessly complies before turning around. Natasha tightens the grip on her pistol as she stares into familiar brown eyes. "Silvia."

The woman smirks. "Hello Natalia."

"You know her?" Clint asks, keeping his arrow pointed at the woman's head.

"Silvia Arent; she oversaw everyone's training, including mine," Natasha explains. "It was her job to make sure we were groomed to perfection.

"And now, I'm the Commander of the Spetsnaz," Silvia adds. "Someone had to take over after the Asset vanished. Pity though; it was such a good leader."

Natasha grits her teeth when Bucky is referenced as an object. She cocks her pistol and keeps it aimed at Silvia. "Where's Hydra?"

The woman frowns. "You're not in any position to be making demands—"

Natasha cuts the woman off by shooting her in the kneecap. Silvia screams and falls to the ground, covering her busted knee with her hands. Nat can feel Clint's eyes on her, but keeps her gaze on the woman lying on the ground. "And you're not in any position to refuse them. Now, tell me, where is Hydra?"

"Not here," Silvia says once she recovers her breath. She shakes her dark hair out of her eyes as she rips off a piece of her jacket sleeve and bunches the fabric over her knee to stop the bleeding. "Not in Russia. They're scattered around other parts of the globe."

"How many?"

Silvia mutters something under her breath.

Natasha responds by shooting her in the other knee, listening to the woman scream in agony. "I said how many?"

"I don't know! I don't fucking know!" the woman screams, eyes wild and panicked. "I'm not high enough to know that information. The only person who knows is Lukin. He's downstairs—in the basement."

Natasha's entire body goes rigid at the mention of Lukin, unable to process that the man who ruined everything is right here, right now. She can finally take him out and there's nothing that anyone else can do.

"That's all I know, I swear," Silvia says, voice breaking as she begins to cry.

Nat looks at the woman without seeing her. "Thank you for your cooperation," she says, tone void of all emotion before shooting Silvia right in between her eyes.

* * *

"Nat, are you sure this is a good idea?"

She pauses in her stride and turns to face Clint. "You don't have to come with me."

Clint looks offended for a brief second before he schools his expression. "You know you're stuck with me."

The corner of her mouth quirks upward. "I was hoping you'd say that."

Nat turns and continues navigating through the lower levels of the basement with Clint trailing behind her. It doesn't take long for the pair to reach the lowest basement level. A single door and several armed guards stand between her and Lukin. She and Clint make quick work of the soldiers without getting a single scratch. Natasha reloads her pistol and leads the way through the double doors, immediately freezing when she realizes where she is.

The laboratory is cold. Stainless steel tables are set in rows across two thirds of the room, which some type of machinery above each one. Cabinets filled with medical supplies line two of the four walls. On the other end of the room is a doorway that leads to what Natasha thinks is someone's office but that's not what she's focused on. There's a chair sitting in her direct line of vision a few feet away from the office, surrounded my machines and monitors and she can't shake the feeling that she's seen this somewhere before _("Wipe him and then place him in cryo. We'll deal with this in a few years," one of the scientists shouted before running past Natasha who was hiding in an air duct). _Standing next to the chair is a man in a white lab coat, gray hair sticking up at every angle. The man has his back to them but Natasha would recognize him anywhere.

"Lukin," she growls in a low tone.

The man in question turns at his name, smirking when he spots Natasha and Clint on the other side of the room. He extends his arms in greeting. "Natalia . . ."

"My name is Natasha," she announces before crossing to the center of the room, stopping in between the rows of lab tables and glaring at Lukin through narrowed eyes.

Lukin hums as his arms fall back to his sides, looking between Natasha and Clint, who is still hovering by the doorway. He pursues his lips and tilts his head to the side in thought. "Where is the asset? I know he was last seen with you."

"He's dead," Natasha reveals without hesitation.

"That's impossible—you're lying," Lukin accuses, actually managing to look shocked. The Winter Soldier was the Red Room's greatest success—created by Karpov and handed down to Lukin.

"I may have been brought up to lie, but I am most certainly telling the truth," she responds. "I buried him myself."

Lukin opens his mouth to continuing speaking but hesitates. He's silent for a few minutes before another smirk crawls over his face. "Tell me, Natalia. Before he died, did he remember you?"

"That is none of your business," Natasha says too quickly, which gives Lukin his answer.

"Natalia, you know it had to be done. You tempted him."

"I made him human," Natasha bites out, her hands curling into fists, as she is unable to stop her past from pushing its way to the forefront of her mind.

Natasha grew up at this base. She and nine other candidates were to be trained by the greatest assassin known to humanity: The Winter Soldier. He taught her everything she knows and they worked brilliantly together, one of the best partnerships Department X had ever seen and it didn't take long for their relationship to shift from professional to personal. She loved him—more than ever loved anyone before . . . but he didn't remember.

She tried her best, but the Red Room was so thorough that even after Bucky gained his memories back, she was still a ghost that was never to be seen again. It's her fault—she should have never asked him to come with her to Budapest. He went with her, making it only to the border of the Soviet Union before they caught up with them. He told her to go on without him; she didn't want to but relented, hiding and watching Department X drag him back to the Red Room. For the longest time, she thought he was dead or worst. Then, the Avengers initiative happened and the rest is history so to speak.

Natasha forces herself out of her thoughts _(Inhale. One . . . two . . . exhale). _She glares at Lukin, who is wearing a self-satisfied smirk on his face that makes Natasha want to gut him. He's proud of what he's done—he's thrilled that he ruined hundreds of lives making and unmaking them, torturing them and forcing them into servitude until they are no longer required of use. In the history of the Red Room, only six people managed to escape. Six . . . out of _hundreds_. She curls her freehand into a fist, mind flashing over all the people she couldn't save: Dmitri, Ivan, Samora, Pax, Damien, Trii, Ava, Amora, Gal.

_Bucky. _

"Where's Hydra?" Nat demands after a few minutes of tensed silence.

Lukin spreads his arms wide again. "They're everywhere," he says gleefully. "Oh, they were so generous, Natalia. You should have heard the things they promised—they were going to help restore Department X to its former glory!"

"But, only once you handed over Winter Soldier, correct?" Natasha questions, barely managing to conceal a smirk.

His eye twitches before his entire face contorts into anger, mouth curling into a frown and beady eyes flashing with rage. He slowly reaches for something behind him without taking his eyes off Natasha. "Listen here, you _bitch_—"

Several gunshots ring out and Lukin is dead before he can hit the ground.


	7. Back to Basics

**Listening to: "Good Kid, M.A.A.D City" (Deluxe Version) by Kendrick Lamar.**

**Warning: violence, mentions of past trauma, death, blood, and slight gore.**

* * *

Back to Basics

Natasha lowers her pistol keeping her eyes on Lukin's form, blood pooling underneath his body from the multiple gunshot wounds in his torso. There's a firearm located a few inches from Lukin's unmoving fingertips and Natasha isn't sure what would have happened if he would have had the opportunity to use it.

She holsters her gun, feeling nothing but satisfaction that the man before he is finally dead. While Lukin's death won't bring back Bucky, Steve, Tony, or anyone else she's lost, she's pleased to know that she's probably saved hundreds—if not thousands of more lives that would have eventually been preyed on by Lukin. Finally, the reign of the Red Room has ended. Department X is no more.

Nat listens to footsteps approaching behind her before a warm hand curls around her shoulder. She leans into the touch and lets out a heavy yet relieved sigh.

"I'm assuming that's his office on the other side of the room," Clint says, tone low and calm. "Let's search it and see what we find. I'm sure he has Intel on Hydra."

Natasha nods her head and slips from underneath Clint's touch. She walks over to the other side of the room, making a show of stepping over Lukin's body before going into the adjacent room. Lukin's office is tiny and windowless, with a large brown desk taking up most of the space. Papers are scattered everywhere, littering the desk, and attached to the various bulletin boards. There's a filing cabinet next to the door that is bursting at the seams and Natasha isn't sure if they'll be able to open it.

"Let's start looking," she says. Nat wanders further into the room and sitting at the desk. She kicks her feet up and brings some of the papers into her lap. She and Clint search the room in silence, the only sounds being the rustling of paper and Clint's footsteps as he moves around the room.

"Hey, Nat, check this out," Clint says after an indeterminate amount of time. He has a file on his hands that has "Hydra" written on the cover in Russian. The archer walks over to Nat and hands it to her, which she scans immediately.

The file consists of several papers, each headed with the name of a city and a country. She continues scanning the items for a few minutes before smiling. "Is this what I think it is?"

"If you're thinking this is a detailed file on each and every single one of Hydra's bases then yes it is," Clint says with a full-fledged grin on his face. "There's a map on the bulletin board that I'm going to bring with us. Oh man, Fury is going to have a field day with this shit!" He makes a whooping noise and darts back over to the other side of the room, carefully setting aside the file in an open space on the floor before beginning to take down the map.

Natasha shakes her head and grabs another stack of papers before noticing a file with her name on it—her real name. One minute, her file is in her hand and the next minute, it's on the other side of the room, papers bent and fluttering to the floor. Natasha is on her feet, anger coursing through her body, muscles tensed and ready for a fight. She's shaking and breathing heavily and just this once does Natasha wish that she left a few soldiers alive for the purpose of killing them.

"Nat?"

Clint's voice brings Natasha back to herself, forcing her to relax and reevaluate. She's Natasha Romanov, Avenger. She's with Clint—her partner, her friend. She's in Russia at the Department X base. She killed Lukin. The nightmare is over but the war isn't won. Natasha takes a deep breath calming herself down. She turns to face Clint, who is looking like a concerned mother bear, and any other day Natasha would have cracked a grin and made a yo mamma joke. But, for now?

"I need to get out of here," she says simply. She hears the sound of rustling papers before a warm, steady hand is placed on her back. Natasha leans into that hand and allows herself to be lead from the base.

* * *

Outside, Department X resembles a war zone. Thick gray smoke rises into the sky, blocking the sun and casting a shadow over the landscape. Fire consumes two of the three buildings, failing to spread despite the closeness of each of the structures. Clint leads Natasha away from the base, scanning the area until he spots the team huddled together a few yards in front of them.

"Hey!" he yells, moving his hand from Natasha's back and waving it.

"My friends!" Thor booms enthusiastically, which causes a slight smile to cross Natasha's face. Thor is a literal ray of sunshine—he's always happy to see his friends and family and has such a positive outlook on life despite all the hardships he's faced.

"Are you two okay? We've tried reaching you, but all we got was static," Pepper says in a worried tone once Nat and Clint reach the rest of the team. Like Rhodey, she's still in her armor, face plate lifted and coated in soot. Her eyes scan over the assassins, slightly nodding to herself when she finds no injuries and Natasha is thankful that she doesn't point how the she and Clint are covered in blood spatter. Pepper was always perceptive like that.

"We must have been too far underground," Clint answers. "You'll never believe what we found though—information on Hydra bases scattered across the globe."

"No fucking way," Rhodey says, sounding both shocked and pleased.

"Uh, yes fucking way," the archer says, grinning. "I have everything right here in my hands."

"Here, give them to me," Pepper says holding out her hand. "I don't want you to lose them."

"Pepper, when have I ever lost anything?"

She raises an eyebrow. "Would you like a detailed list on your desk tomorrow morning?"

He pauses. "No, I would not." Clint hands Pepper the papers without another comment. She opens a compartment on her armor and gently sets everything inside before closing it.

"Avengers report," Hill says over the comms.

"Everyone's here except for—" Clint cuts himself off. The team knows exactly what he was going to say. " Everyone's here."

"Good. I want you all to move away from the base. I'm going to blow it up," Hill says. She sounds like she's smirking.

"There's a hill nearby out of the blast radius," Bruce says. "We'll have a clear view from there."

"Lead the way, Doctor Banner," Thor says with a nod.

"Just Bruce is fine," he responds with an amused smile. _(Thor is the only one who calls Bruce by his title and last name, though he does that for everyone. Steve said Thor was the only one who Bucky has ever allowed to call him James, other than his own family)._ Bruce leads the way to the vantage point, which is only about a ten-minute walk away. The Avengers settle down and radio Hill, saying that they're clear as they look at what is left of Department X.

Clint pulls out his phone and starts playing Fall Out Boy's "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark." The song reaches the chorus right as Hill flies over the last remaining base and drops a bomb on it, flying away dramatically while the structure is blow to pieces, flames reaching to the sky as smoke billows in every direction.

Natasha watches the bases burn in silence until the song finishes and Clint puts away his phone. "Does anyone want to go to _Kristyn's_?"

Clint pats a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Yeah; let's go to _Kristyn's_."

* * *

Back in the states, the Avengers shower and change into their civvies after they arrive at the mansion. Pepper passed on the files to Hill, who assured that she, Fury, and Coulson would analyze them immediately. When the entire team meets up downstairs, they decide to walk to _Kristyn's_, which is only a few blocks away.

Maxie was heartbroken when she learned of everyone's deaths. She'd known Steve and Bucky since she was a child and Tony when he was young. Natasha's heart went out to her—she had just gotten her boys back (Steve and Bucky tried their best to visit her at least once a week to catch up and relieve the olden days) only to have them ripped away from her again. She attended both Steve and Tony's funerals, but was unable to make Bucky's because her daughter was in intensive care _(car accident via a drunk driver. Thankfully, she is all right and pressing charges against the man, who nearly killed her)._

The Avengers arrive at_ Kristyn's_. Natasha spares a glance at the Avengers Tower, which is officially Stark Industries, rising into the sky with a height that rivals the Empire State Building _(Pepper wanted Avengers Tower to be a symbol—no matter how hard they are beaten down, they will always rise again and higher than before)._ She pulls herself from her thoughts and follows her teammates into the diner. The interior looks the same as it always has aside for the memorial when one first enters the building. Natasha and the team helped Maxie put it together—adding in personal photos they've taken in addition to cheesy merchandise and other memorabilia.

"Maxie!" Clint yells before running over and wrapping his arms around the elderly barista.

Maxie laughs and hugs Clint back. "Hello everyone! It's been a while since I've seen you all! How have you been?"

"We've been doing all right," Pepper says with a smile plastered onto her face.

"How's Rhonda doing?" Rhodey asks.

"She'll be getting out of the hospital in a few days and then we have to go to court next week," Maxie answers as she releases Clint from the hug. "Thank heaven too. I nearly had a heart attack when I got that call. Bill and I were especially glad that the kids were with us instead of in that car! Rhonda's thankful for that too."

When Maxie finishes speaking, she ushers the Avengers to their booth (the same booth Steve and Tony used for their first date). Once the team settles in (Clint, Nat, and Bruce on one side; Pepper, Rhodey, and Thor on the other), Maxie pulls out her notepad and pen. "We having the usual today?" The usual consists of an extra-large plate of Nachos the team shares, endless Martini's, and five cases of coconut cheesecake.

"Yes please," the Avengers chirp together before laughing at their synchronization.

Maxie smiles and writes down the order before leaving the team to get their drinks. They pass the time by poking fun at each other and having a "who can be the most like Fury" contest. Rhodey wins.

When Maxie returns, Natasha proposes a drinking contest and Clint says Nat would drink everyone under the table other than Thor and Bruce, the latter mentioning he doesn't know if he can get drunk. Clint says they need to try it and the Doctor gives a sad smile before saying that Bucky said the exact same thing.

The Avengers don't get the chance to react to Bruce's words for Maxie returns with their food. Clint immediately shoves a handful of Nachos in his mouth and proceeds to choke, causing everyone to laugh. Natasha thumps him on the back while the archer sputters and tries to catch his breath. Pepper invites Maxie to sit with them as they do every time they come here, and she accepts, pulling over a chair and proceeding to tell embarrassing stories about Steve and Bucky, and Tony's childhoods throughout the rest of the meal and desert.

Natasha hasn't laughed this hard in a long time.

* * *

When the Avengers finish their meal and drinks, they reluctantly say their goodbyes to Maxie. They each give the barista a huge hug and promises that they'll return soon before leaving the diner with smiles on their faces. Clint bumps into Natasha's shoulder, scrunching his face and sticking out his tongue like a lizard. Natasha laughs and shoves him, causing the archer to grin and shove her back.

"Alright, children, behave yourselves—we're in public," Pepper teases.

"Whatever you say, mom," the assassins chirp at the same time, which causes everyone to laugh.

They're about halfway to the mansion when the hairs on the back of Natasha's stand up and she can't shake the feeling that they're being watched. Reminded of the time when Tony told the team that he felt like he was being watched after the Maria Stark Foundation Ball, Natasha clenches her jaw. "Clint," she whispers harshly.

"I know," he responds, eyes darting around the area in front of them, waiting for someone to jump out of the shadows.

"Are we being followed?" Pepper asks quietly from somewhere behind Natasha.

Natasha nods her head, lips pursed tightly as she leads the way around the next corner, setting her destination for Central Park. Even though the park will no doubt be crowded, seeing as it is two in the afternoon, it won't be as busy as the streets their currently navigating through and it will be easier for them to evacuate the citizens in a timely manner and deal with whomever dared to come after the Avengers when they're all together. That was a poor decision on their part.

Nat turns the corner and tenses, immediately on alert. Standing in the middle of the sidewalk is Rumlow, wearing his Crossbones uniform (sans the mask) and a smirk on his lips. Around him and on the surrounding roofs are whom Nat assumes to be his new crew. The Hydra Soldiers are all armed to the teeth and not bothering to conceal themselves as hundreds of New Yorkers walk by, unware of the danger inches from them. Natasha blows out a breath and walks forward, stopping when she's a few feet away from Rumlow and the seven men he has on the ground with him. Rumlow's smirk widens.

"What are you doing here?" she asks, tone lowered and firm.

"Pierce sent me to thank you. He's pleased that you Avengers took out Department X—that leaves us one less thing to do," Rumlow says. "Herr Pierce wanted to come himself, but he's been busy preparing for the arrival of the Winter Soldier. If you could just hand him over, that would be much appreciated."

Natasha stares blankly at Rumlow. "I'm going to tell you the same thing I told Lukin before I shot him: the Winter Soldier is dead."

Rumlow looks shocked for a brief second before he schools his expression under a mask of indifference. "Natasha, you know I don't like it when you lie to me. Now, please, tell me the truth. It will only end badly for you if you don't."

"I'm not lying," she reiterates, curling her left hand into a fist.

"Natasha—"

"Would you like me to take you to his grave? Or how about dig up his corpse, huh?" Natasha challenges, pushing back the bile at the thought of having to defile Bucky's grave. "Would that prove it to you?"

Rumlow's expression is consumed with anger before he lashes out and swings his fist at Natasha's head. She catches his fist and twists his arm, forcing the limb behind his back, pulling him in front of her and pressing the cold barrel of her now drawn pistol against his back.

"I wouldn't," she tells Rumlow's crew, who have drawn their own weapons and are aiming them at her. Natasha has no doubt in her mind that if Crossbones ordered, his men would shoot through him to get to her. She's seen it done before and has done it herself.

Rumlow breaks her grip and whips around to try to punch her again. Natasha dodges and jabs him in the stomach as she listens to the beginning sound of panic and horrified footsteps. The citizens have finally caught on to the danger and are starting to run for their lives. The Avengers need to get control of this situation soon because right now they're running the risk of being trampled by the very people they want to protect.

"Rhodey, Bruce, Pep evacuate everyone. Clint, get to a perch," Natasha yells right as a bullet whizzes past her head. "Thor!"

"Natasha duck!" Thor booms.

Natasha dodges Rumlow's kick and plasters herself to the sidewalk. Unfortunately, Crossbones follows her example, barely avoiding getting his head taken off by Mjolnir as she flies by and knocks down three of the seven Hydra Soldiers. Natasha jumps to her feet and keeps Rumlow occupied while Thor takes care of the rest of the ground soldiers. Clint downs a soldier who was trying to jump into Natasha's battle with a sniper rifle he acquired before working on the others, taking down the soldiers on the surrounding buildings with a single bullet.

"That's it—everyone's evacuated!" Rhodey shouts.

"Snipers down!" Clint calls.

"As are the soldiers on the ground," Thor says.

Natasha grunts dodging a hit before kicking Rumlow in the throat. He stumbles backwards but recovers quickly. Crossbones strikes before Natasha can get into position, slipping past her defense and kicking her in the ribs. Nat flies backwards several feet before she collides with a sturdy chest and strong arm wrapped around her waist. She looks up and sees Thor's kind gaze directed at her. Thor sets Natasha on the ground. Before she can thank him and return to her battle, several gunshots ring out. She whips her head to the side and sees that Rumlow is gone.

"Where the fuck did he go?" Clint calls, still observing the area through the scope of his rifle.

"He was heading west towards Central Park. I tried to clip him, but he was too fast," Rhodey was with both hands curled around his gun and a regretful expression.

"It's alright Rhodey; I think they might have enhanced him somehow. Maybe gave him a version of Steve and Bucky's serum," Natasha says, sounding rough around the edges. She's pissed that Rumlow keeps getting an advantage over her and having a serum isn't going to help the Avengers odds in defeating him especially if he catches them without their heavy weapons again. She sighs heavily and mutters, "Son of a bitch."

* * *

"Fury, we have a situation," Natasha says as soon as the Avengers arrive at the mansion. JARVIS locks down the building behind them after Pepper gives the order.

"I know," Fury responds, voice flowing from the study, which he's claimed as his office. "I saw it on the news."

"Shit," Clint mutters. "I was hoping we would have avoided that."

Pepper heads to the left and leads the way to the downstairs study, which used to be one of Howard's that he never used unless he was having a business meeting. She opens the double doors further and the Avengers pile inside.

The entire study has a sophisticated feel to it—dark green walls, faux fireplace lite and casting a dim glow over the entire room. A smooth, wooden brown desk rests in the middle of the room with a red leather chair behind it. There are pictures that hang in the room, mostly of the New York City Skyline, but there's one of the Avengers, Coulson, Fury, and Hill they took in the three months before the third trial resting above the fireplace. Natasha smiles inwardly at the memory—they made another Shield Agent take their picture before Fury could change his mind, which he did halfway through their photo session. He tried to escape and Thor kept in the in frame, which the former Director was not amused by.

"Where are Phil and Maria?" Pepper asks Fury.

Fury is sitting behind the desk with a plethora of files and papers littered in front of him. "Howard's lab—they're looking for more Intel in addition to what I've already found."

"I'm guessing it's good?" Clint questions with a raised eyebrow.

Fury smiles genuinely and Natasha knows this is probably going to be some of the best news she's heard in a while. "From the Intel you secured for me, I have been able to uncover that there are a grand total of eighteen Hydra Bases scattered across the globe, including Frederick, Holdrege and Tavistock. Since those last three are destroyed, there are fifteen bases left and no doubt Rumlow and Pierce are hiding at one of them."

"So once we get those bases, Rumlow, and Pierce . . ." Bruce trails off as a smile crosses his face.

"Hydra will be gone for good," Fury confirms with a nod.

"What are we waiting for?" Natasha says, looking at each one of her teammates and grinning. "Let's take down Hydra once and for all."


	8. Bases Loaded

**Listening to: "Yeezus" (Full Album) by Kanye West.**

**Warning: violence, slight gore, death, blood, delusions, unreality, and brief mentions of Nazism.**

* * *

Bases Loaded

"Where do we start?" Pepper asks determination laced in her tone.

"Breiholz Hydroelectric Power Plant, located along the Eider River in Germany," Fury says as he pulls out a piece of paper from the beginning of the Hydra folder Nat and Clint found at Department X. "The Plant has been under Hydra control since Hitler came into power in the thirties."

"I thought Red Skull mainly stuck to his own agenda," Bruce says.

"He did, but he gave Hitler weapons and soldiers in exchange for funding," Fury informs.

Bruce hums in response. "So, what's the plan?"

"Eliminate Hydra's influence and regain control of the base," Fury says. "I have a feeling Chancellor Merkel will be pleased to have more of Hydra's influence eradicated."

Rhodey raises his eyebrow. "You personally know the Chancellor of Germany?"

"We met at a party. Ironically, Pierce introduced us," Fury says with a slight scowl. "She's not Hydra, I've already had it confirmed. Plus, she still owes one after Clint and Natasha discovered that Neo-Nazi hideout in Hamburg."

"Yeah and on a complete accident too, which I left out of the report like you told me too," Clint says with slight disbelief.

Natasha snorts. She remembers that mission well—it was one of the last few before the Avengers Initiative was activated in response to Loki and the Chitauri over two years ago. She and Clint were sent to Germany when Chancellor Merkel, who suspected that a politician from Hamburg was trading government secrets, contacted Fury. After searching their target's home, they discovered that he was funding a group of Neo-Nazi's, who were planning a complete takeover of Berlin. Clint and Natasha searched the city in a near panic (the date set for the coup was the next day). They were running across the roofs when Clint fell through one after stepping on a corroded piece of wood and interrupted a poker game being played by the very people they were hunting for. He quickly fled to the streets where Shield Agents apprehended the people chasing him effectively stopping the takeover plot (they also intercepted the politician at the airport before he fled the country).

"When do we leave?" Rhodey asks, pulling Nat from her thoughts.

Fury smiles. "Whenever you want."

The Avengers end up leaving roughly two hours after their impromptu meeting with Fury. When they land in Germany, Coulson and Hill park as far away from the base as possible, seeing as the area surrounding the compound is entirely flat land that offers no cover from trees and brush.

Surprisingly, it doesn't take the Avengers long to sneak onto the base without being spotted and take out the soldiers guarding it (they only had to deal with a shootout in the command room, but even that didn't take too long). By Coulson's estimate, there were only about four dozen soldiers on base, which worries Natasha. That's too little for a base this large and valuable, but that could be attested to Pierce's overconfidence since this base has been under Hydra's influence for years.

Once the Avengers are in control, Hill leaves to bring the Quinjet over while the team packs up all of Hydra's Intel and technology that will be sorted through once they arrive back in the states. After everything is loaded, Fury pulls out his phone and calls the Chancellor, informing her that the hydroelectric plant is once again German.

Nat is strapping herself into her seat on the jet when Clint plops down on her left, wearing a wide grin that she can't help but return.

"Man, that was so easy," he says, confidently, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes. "Taking down Hydra is going to be a piece of cake."

Natasha frowns and slaps Clint in the arm, ignoring the archer's yelp. "Don't jinx us, you moron."

* * *

Following Germany, the Avengers head to a Hydra base located deep within the Petén Lowlands in Guatemala, amongst rolling hills that are littered with dense tropical rainforest. The area the team is currently navigating through (after having to leave the Quinjet in the savannah near the edge of the forest) is sparsely populated, which means the Avengers won't have to worry as much about the possibility of civilian casualties. Natasha is thankful—she's had enough of seeing innocent people die.

"Hey, what's that in the distance?" Coulson calls as he points to a large, stone structure, rising high above the thick forest.

"That is a Mayan Temple," Pepper says with a fond smile. "El Petén is covered with beautiful ruins such as the one in front of us. I should know—I did paper on it."

"You think we could use it as a vantage point?" Clint asks curiously. "Or at least as a way to see how far away from the base we are?"

"Good idea," Hill says from her place at the front of the pack. She raises her machete, that she found in the Quinjet's armory, and slices through a cluster of vines that are blocking the pathway.

The Avengers make their way through the jungle and to the base of the temple, craning their necks to look up at the structure looming over their heads and stretching to the sky. Thor, Rhodey, and Pepper give their non-flying teammates a lift to the top so they don't have to exert too much energy climbing the long and nearly vertical staircase.

After Thor sets her down, Natasha separates from the rest of the group and walks around the ledge surrounding the upper portion of the temple. She looks out at the miles of thick, dense forest surrounding them, feeling a calm wash over her at being so high up with the silence of the wilderness around her. She continues walking around the ledge, eyes scanning the area before she notices something in the distance.

Roughly five miles out is a large, modern factory of sorts, with long smoke stacks that produce a thick, dark smoke that rises into the air. Natasha wonders if the Guatemalan government knows this is out here, but then again, she doesn't think they would built a factory so close to the Mayan ruins.

"Guys, I found the base," Nat calls, keeping her eyes on the factory while she waits for her teammates.

"What do you think they're doing?" Clint asks from somewhere on Natasha's left.

"Whatever it is, it's not good," Hill says grimly. "Fury, I recommend we—"

Hill cuts herself off. Natasha turns her head to look at the woman before following her gaze and seeing several heavily armored trucks driving down a nearby hill.

"What are you guys thinking? Reinforcements?" Rhodey asks with suspicion laced in his tone.

"Or the local militia," Pepper suggests. "Some of the villages here like to have extra protection from the wilderness and each other. They pay with food and shelter in exchange for services."

"How should we proceed forth?" Thor asks.

Pepper turns to him and shrugs, a movement that is barely noticeable since she's wearing her armor. "We wait it out—if that is the militia, it's best not to get tangled up in affairs we know nothing about. That's the one thing I always tried to tell Tony and ignored me every time."

The Avengers follow Pep's advice and decide to sit on the edge of the temple, waiting patiently for something to happen. Sure enough, ten minutes later, the explosions begin. Natasha watches as the base is overrun, the constant gunfire from automatic weapons breaks the calm silence of the forest. The battle continues for an indeterminable amount of time before a roaring cheer in an unknown language is heard followed by the sounds of metal being destroyed.

The barest hint of a smile crosses Natasha's face before she turns to her teammates. "It seems the militia has this covered. We should head to the next location."

* * *

"I swear to every God that if we somehow manage to make it through this, I will always take full advantage of the air conditioning back at the mansion," Clint pants out as he wipes the sweat from his brow and Natasha can't help but silently agree.

The Avengers arrived in Qatar in the middle of the afternoon at the height of summer. Qatar wasn't the next one listed in the folder, but Fury received a call from the Prime Minister, saying that Hydra has taken control of Dukhan Field, the largest oil and natural gas reserve in the country. The organization is threatening him, saying if he doesn't pay a hefty ransom, they are going to blow the oil field sky high, which will not only kill hundreds of thousands of people in the crossfire, but it would also cripple the economy and affect trade across the world. Fury assured the Prime Minister that the Avengers were on the case.

As soon as she stepped off the Quinjet, Natasha immediately began sweating. This one hundred and six degree Fahrenheit weather is relentless. Natasha has never felt heat like this before and for once, she desperately misses the chill of the Russian winter.

The Avengers slowly make their way to Dukhan Field in the hopes that their measured pace will help them conserve some energy. Natasha feels bad for Rhodey and Pepper, who have to wear their armor in this sort of weather. She knows JARVIS is busting his ass making sure those suits are properly chilled and she's hoping it will be enough.

After walking through what feels like miles of dry, cracked desert land, they reach a hill that overlooks Dukhan Field. JARVIS immediately scans the area. The results come in after a few minutes, revealing that there are approximately fifty-five soldiers on site. Five are guarding the main entrance, while the others are patrolling the five sections the Field has been divided into.

"Here's the plan: myself, Coulson, Hill, Barton, and Romanov will sneak onto the base and acquire a uniform, which will make us blend easier and have a freer range of movement," Fury says.

"If I may, what shall be required of the rest of us?" Thor asks.

"We're going to take down the Hydra base on the opposite side of the peninsula," Rhodey says, placing an armor-covered hand on Thor's shoulder. "That way, we won't have to worry about reinforcements or patrols coming to the oil field while they're in the middle of this operation, especially since it's broad daylight."

Fury nods his approval. "Remember, this is a high priority stealth operation. If Hydra learns we're here, there is a high risk that they'll blow up Dukhan Field immediately in order to take us out."

"But, no pressure or anything," Clint says after a beat of silence to which Hill snorts.

The team then splits up, Thor carrying Bruce and flying off with Pepper and Rhodey following them. Natasha follows the rest of her teammates down to the Field, quickly subduing the soldiers guarding the entrance and changing into their uniforms before separating.

Nat goes to her section and immediately begins taking note of each of the guard's routes and possible locations to hide the corpses. Once she gets an idea of how she wants to do this, she pulls out her knife and goes to work, taking down three soldiers and stowing them away with ease before moving on.

As the mission wears on, the sun becomes more relentless and Natasha doesn't know how much more of this she can take. She's sweating buckets, her vision is blurring, and she's feeling lightheaded and dizzy. Her limbs feel heavy and warm and she has to force herself to move with every step. Natasha slides up behind another soldier, who is unaware of her presence, and goes in for the kill.

_Natalia. _

Her first name being said in a familiar, seductive tone nearly causes her to cease all movement before completing the kill. She doesn't understand. How is he talking to her—he's been dead for two weeks now.

_I'm in your head, Natalia._

Natasha shakes her head trying her best to keep her mind clear as she tucks the body into a shadowy corner. She takes a breath, inhaling the musty, dust-ridden air before slipping up behind another soldier and taking him out with a jab to the neck.

_Such a good girl, Natalia . . . you were my star pupil for a reason . . ._

Natasha hides the body and tries to ignore Winter Soldier's voice. She's pissed because she thinks about him constantly, the "what ifs" swirling through her brain and she thinks about their time together, and how much she loved him and loved being with him and how she can't stop her body from reacting to his words and—

"_Miss Potts is down." _

Natasha's mind immediately snaps back into the present. She's panting heavily and it's a miracle the soldier standing three feet in front of her isn't turning around, and discovering her behind him with a knife clutched tightly in her hand. Nat quickly takes him out and stuffs his body in a nearby barrel right as Hill says, "What do you mean she's down?"

"_Miss Potts has fainted due to her never being in a climate this humid and in armor this heavy,"_ JARVIS says. _"I have tried my best to keep the suit ventilated and air conditioned, but it turned out not be enough."_

Natasha can hear the regret and fear in his tone and she can't help but not blame JARVIS. The desert is brutal—Rhodey's told horror stories about Afghanistan where men have collapsed and died in front of him due to wearing heavy equipment for hours in the sun. "Where are you taking her?" she asks before sneaking up on another soldier.

"_I am en route to the Quinjet. I have Doctor Banner with me while Master Rhodes and Prince Thor finishing taking out the Hydra Base. Master Rhodes and Prince Thor will be able to join you once they're finished if necessary." _

Nat takes out the soldier in front of her and hides the body in a crate. "Alright; JARVIS, you take care of them."

"_You have my word, Mistress Romanov." _

Once JARVIS finishes speaking, it doesn't take much longer for each of them to announce their areas are cleared, which Natasha is thankful for. This heat is fucking with her head and the sooner she leaves, the sooner she never has to come back. She strips off the borrowed uniform so she's only wearing her stealth suit before meeting up with Clint, Fury, Hill, and Coulson at the entrance so they can all walk back together.

Fury calls the Prime Minister of Qatar and tells him of the mission's success and that the bodies are going to need to be cleaned up while Coulson radios the Quinjet to check on Pepper's status _(According to Bruce, she'll make a full recovery. She woke up a little delusional, but once she got some water and food, she was back to herself)._

Nat and Clint fall into step with each other and he gently nudges her, which causes Natasha almost to lose her balance. She stumbles but manages to steady herself, ignoring Clint's concerned gaze boring into her back like the sun.

_Natalia, are you operational? _

"What the _fuck_ did you just say to me?"

Clint looks at Natasha with a startled expression and she can't help but feel guilty for snapping at him. Clint hasn't done anything wrong—he hasn't been in her head, taunting her with past words and praises.

The archer quickly composes himself. "I said: Natasha, are you okay?"

Nat swallows, trying to get some moisture into her throat to speak, but her body isn't producing much saliva. "I'm fine," she lies. "I'm just exhausted from the heat."

Clint looks at her as if he doesn't believe a word she said, but says nothing in favor of continuing back to the Quinjet in silence.

* * *

"Laos? Where the heck is that?" Clint asks as he looks over a map of southern Asia that's resting on the fold out table in front of him.

"It's located between Vietnam and Thailand," Pepper informs as she points to Laos's location on the map.

Clint furrows his brow. "Huh, I've never heard of it before."

"Not many people have—it gets overlooked a lot," Pepper says with a sad expression.

"Where'd you hear about it? Wait; let me guess. You wrote a paper on it?" Clint teases.

Pepper hums. "Close; I actually once dated a guy, who's grandparents immigrated to America from Laos. He educated me on the history of the country when I told him I was curious to learn more. Listening to him speak, you could tell he was proud of his heritage."

Clint smiles and nods. "So, where's this base located again?"

"Somewhere in the Kaleum District in Sekong," Fury says. He rises from his seat and stands next to Pepper before pulling out a sharpie and marking the area with an X. "I don't know an exact location, unfortunately. The entire area is isolated and there aren't many clear maps of the area."

"You think the locals might be willing to help out?" Rhodey asks.

Fury shrugs. "Depends on what Hydra's influence is like, but I suspect we will need their expertise. The rumored location is surrounded by thick jungle that's difficult to navigate."

"More jungle? I thought we were done with that shit in Guatemala," Hill says from the front of the Quinjet. Natasha can hear the disappointment in her tone.

Clint and Rhodey turn to each other before grinning and singing, _"Hill, Hill, Hill of the Jungle, watch out for that tree!" _

"Wow, you guys are such comedians. You should like totally go on tour," Hill deadpans over the sounds of the team laughing. Even Fury cracks a smile.

The laughter dies down once the Avengers are above the suspected location. Hill and Coulson have to fly around the area a few times before finding a suitable clearing to land in. When the Quinjet is finally parked, the Avengers pile off and begin fighting through the brush and vines. Clint and Rhodey sing "Hill of the Jungle" on repeat until she turns around and threats to go Jason on them, while waving the machete in her hand.

After roughly an hour of navigating through the Laotian jungle, the team stumbles upon a village made up of wooden and mud huts and inhabitants that appear frightened by their weapons. The village leader quickly meets them on the outskirts and demands to know what they are doing on his territory.

Pepper, with translation help from JARVIS, calmly explains that they are here to deal with the Hydra base located somewhere with the area. The leader seems pleased by her answer and reveals that he is tired of the Europeans presence, seeing as how they've been intruding on his homeland ever since he was a boy (and now, by Natasha's calculations, he looks as though he's in his late eighties—maybe even early nineties). Pepper continues by saying they will eliminate Hydra and the leader offers the assistance of his finest warriors to guide them through the expansive jungle.

Natasha exchanges a quick glance with Hill and has to bite back a grin at the complete look of relief on Hill's face that she won't be the one leading the team through the jungle anymore.

The village leader ushers the team into a nearby hut where they are introduced to the woman in charge of the warriors. Together, they devise a plan and make agreements to leave the village after a few hours of rest and preparation.

When nightfall hits, the Avengers set out into the forest with the warriors, carefully navigating their way through miles of thick brush and heavy branches. Everything goes according to plan until Clint brushes at a scaly vine that turned out to be a python. The python falls on him and Clint flips his shit, running away from the group like a mad man while simultaneously trying not to alert Hydra of their position. It takes the warriors ten minutes to find Clint and remove the python and another fifteen to get him back to the others. After that, Clint practically attaches himself to Natasha's arm and she can't wipe the grin off her face.

He's never going to live this down.

Natasha's internal clock says they arrive at the base at around four in the morning. Staying in the brush, they wait for JARVIS to scan the area and confirm how many enemies are around. When the results come in, the warriors set out first, taking down the snipers and stragglers with a brutal efficiency that rivals both Thor and Bucky.

The warriors give the all clear signal and Pepper and Rhodey exit the brush, starting up their jet boots and flying through the air, smashing through the front door before lighting up the interior of the Hydra base. Natasha follows with her team and the warriors behind her, their combined efforts easily overwhelming the soldiers. Before she can blink, Hydra is down and the base is destroyed. The warriors throw their heads and hands to the sky and unleash a battle cry that the Avengers mirror with one of their own.

Spirits are high when they return to the village. The news of their victory greatly pleases the leader, who thanks the Avengers for their aid. Pepper informs him that they are just doing their job. The village leader offers a place of rest for the team, but they decline, stating that they need to get back to their home. The leader understands and sends them away after wishing them the best of luck.

Walking away from the village, Natasha feels light on her feet and she knows her team feels the same way. She turns to her right and exchanges a smile with Clint, who gives her two thumbs up.

"Hey slackers—you're falling behind," Rhodey calls from a little ways up ahead.

"Race you!" Clint shouts before running ahead of Natasha.

"Hey!" she shouts before chasing her friend. When she catches up to him, she throws her leg out and successfully trips him, listening to him fall face first into the dirt as she continues forward.

"Not fair!" he yells dejected from somewhere behind her.

Natasha responds with a laugh.

* * *

**A/N: I feel like the ending is a little rushed but that could just be me.**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed! Next time I update, it'll be with the finale! :)**


	9. Moving Forward

**A/N: Guys, this is it—this is the last chapter not only of the fic, but also of the series itself. **** I just want to give a massive MASSIVE thank you to everyone who has supported me and left comments and kudos/likes and just—you guys are the best. Whether you've been here since the very beginning with "Skyfall" or you just found me now thank you so much! I'm going to stop rambling now and get on with it! Again, thank you! **

**Listening to: "To Build a Home" by The Cinematic Orchestra. **

**Warning: blood, death, slight gore, mentions of past trauma and events.**

* * *

Moving Forward

"Y'all ready for this?"

"Clint. Never. Again."

"Oh come on, Rhodes; lighten up, will you?"

Rhodey frowns.

"Aw—now you turn that frown upside down!"

"I will kill you."

"I don't think you will."

"Wanna bet?"

Clint opens his mouth to retaliate when Hill cuts him off.

"Will you two focus," she hisses. "Hurry and blow up that base before they realize it's covered with explosives!"

Clint rolls his eyes before picking up the detonator and pressing the red button, which causes the base to explode, sending large chucks of the metal exterior flying in every direction while fire consumes what's left of the main skeleton of the base. The archer whoops and cheers with joy from the Avengers vantage point on a nearby cliff side that overlooks the flaming structure.

Rhodey shakes his head. "Clint, you love doing that _way_ too much."

Clint laughs. "You know it, my man! Whoo! Kazakhstan base: successfully destroyed!"

Natasha grins at Clint's antics, proud of the fact that the Avengers have made such fantastic progress, managing to eliminate fourteen of the fifteen remaining Hydra bases in just four short months.

"Now that that's taken care of, let's head back to the mansion," Coulson says. He stands and stretches his muscles, wincing when his bones pop. "I think there's still a layered chocolate ice cream cake in the freezer and with any luck, it's not expired or freezer burnt."

"Cake? I'm gone!" Clint exclaims. He scrambles to his feet and ends up tripping and falling flat on his face.

Natasha snorts and the archer turns his head and frowns at her. She responds by shrugging unapologetically.

Clint rolls his eyes and hops to his feet, brushing the dirt off his face and uniform before grabbing his arrows and leading the way back to the Quinjet. Pepper and Coulson fall into step behind him, chatting about some French soap opera they both watch while Thor and Bruce speak quietly amongst themselves. Hill and Fury trail after the two of them, opting to stay silent.

Natasha rises to her feet and turns, looking out at the destroyed base. The smoke is starting to die down as the fire burns itself out.

"You coming?"

Natasha glances to her side and sees Rhodey standing a few feet away, clearing waiting for her. She smiles and nods her head. "Yeah, I'm coming."

She looks back at the base, lingering for a brief moment before turning her back on the scene and walking over to Rhodey, their matched stride evenly paced as they follow their teammates to the jet.

* * *

Back at the mansion, Natasha enters the kitchen and rolls her eyes at seeing Clint sitting at the dining room table, digging into a large slice of cake and moaning wantonly. She sits down next to Clint and checks over the item, pleased to find that the cake is both in date and not freezer burnt. She grabs a plate and silverware of her own before cutting herself a slice and beginning to eat.

"Coulson, this cake is delicious," Nat comments once Coulson walks into the kitchen. "Where did you get it?"

Coulson hums. "I'm glad you like it. I actually got it from Costco down the road."

Natasha and Clint immediately stop eating. They swallow what is left in their mouths and slowly lower their forks before pushing their plates away.

Coulson furrows his brow and looks at the two with confusion. "You don't like Costco?"

"No," Nat says at the same time Clint shakes his head and answers, "Not particularly."

Bruce, Thor, Pepper, and Rhodey wander into the kitchen and each take a seat around the dining table. Thor grabs Clint's abandoned plate and non-discretely slides it towards himself. He picks up a fork and takes a large bite of the cake before quickly consuming the rest.

"This cake—I like it," Thor says, with a mischievous gleam in his eyes. "Another!" Instead of throwing the plate on the ground as he would in Asgard, he reaches over and grabs Natasha's plate, pulling it towards himself and eating the cake she didn't finish.

Bruce lets out a surprised laugh with causes everyone else in the kitchen to start cracking up. Thor, looking pleased with himself, eats the rest of the cake on the plate in front of him before grabbing a knife and helping himself to a third slice.

Hill and Fury enter the kitchen as the laughter dies down with files in their hands, both looking amused even though they don't ask what the fuss is about. The pair settles in the only two available seats and grabs some cake for themselves.

Fury makes an approving hum once he takes a bite. He pulls a file out of the middle of the stack he brought in with him with his freehand and slides it over to Coulson, who immediately opens it and scans the only paper left inside.

"The final base is in Greenland?" Coulson questions, raising his eyes from the Hydra file to look at Fury curiously.

Fury nods. He takes another bite of his cake and swallows before speaking. "It's surrounded by glaciers on all sides. The only way into the base is from above."

"And there's no doubt in my mind that the roof is guarded with cannons and other heavy machinery," Hill says with slight exasperation.

"So, what you're saying is: this won't be easy," Clint says, wearing a grim look.

Hill nods her confirmation.

"We've face a lot worse than this before, guys. We've gotten this far as a team and we'll finish it as a team," Natasha declares, her eyes scanning each of the Avengers. "We can to this. Trust me when I say this will be a . . . piece of cake."

Silence.

"Oh goddammit, Natasha," Clint shouts angrily, which causes Natasha to grin widely.

* * *

On the way to the airport after finishing their cake and any weapon repairs, Fury receives a call from one of his contacts in Greenland, who reveals that he saw Pierce and Rumlow walking through Nuuk in poor disguises, almost as if they want people to know they're there. With this new information, Natasha punches on the gas and flies to the airport, haphazardly parking the minivan in front of their hangar and rushing everyone onto the Quinjet. Once seated, Hill and Coulson start up the jet and set their destination for Greenland.

The flight itself is spent in a tensed, anticipatory silence only broken by Fury quietly chatting on the phone and Pepper's typing. Rhodey and Bruce are meditating while Thor polishes his hammer. Halfway through the flight, Clint falls asleep, his head resting on Natasha's shoulder and quiet snores reaching her ears. Nat smiles to herself, shifting so she can rest her cheek against his soft hair. She closes her eyes, deciding to take this valuable opportunity to rest and conserve energy for the battle ahead.

Coulson and Hill land the Quinjet at Nuuk airport after a relatively quiet flight, parking in the designated spot that Fury had arranged for them to use while they were heading over. The Avengers climb off the jet and into a pre-rented car waiting for them outside of the airport before setting off. Coulson drives the team into the capital of Greenland (Nuuk), following the coordinates that were listed in the file. He continues driving until he reaches the end of the road, turning off the car and staring at the glacier, which is visible in the distance.

"I didn't realize that the base was on an island, sir," Coulson says.

Fury hums thoughtfully. "Neither did I."

The Avengers abandon their car, walking along the edge of the sea until they encounter a small wooden cabin with a speedboat docked next to it.

Clint turns to everyone and grins widely before walking over and climbing into the driver's seat, making a pleased noise once he's able to hot wire the boat. He ushers the team inside, even though it's a bit of a tight fit, and takes off when everyone is settled.

Once ashore on the island, the Avengers stand in a circle next to the speedboat trying to figure out their next move. Natasha turns her head to the side, brow furrowing when she notices something a few feet from her: a lifeboat that's partially covered in ice with the words _'Stark Industries' _branded on the side. Natasha's seen this boat before—this is the same lifeboat that Bucky stole from Howard during the third trial.

She can't stop the laugh that bubbles in her throat and escapes through her lips, breaking the silence surrounding them. Natasha hears Clint ask her if she's alright, but for the life of her, she can't stop laughing.

* * *

Rhodey, Pepper, and Thor give their friends a lift to the top of the glacier after spending a few moments teasing them for not being able to fly. Pepper sets Natasha, Clint, and Hill down on the edge of the ice carefully, giving them a quick warning to watch their steps. Nat walks away from the others, mindful of her stride as she makes her way to the edge of the glacier and peers down at the large base below.

Hill was right. The base is heavily guarded with machine gunners and snipers with rocket launchers littered across the entirety of the roof. A helipad with a helicopter resting on top of it is located on the ground next to the base, and Natasha makes a mental note to keep an eye on it, seeing as Pierce and Rumlow could easily make an escape with it. Though, she won't deny the thrill that whirls inside of her at the thought of blowing the helicopter clear out of the sky.

"What should we do?" Pepper asks cautiously.

Natasha smirks. "We blow in the front door . . . or should I say the roof." She turns her head. "Thor? Would you like to do the honors?"

Thor meets her eyes, wearing a smirk that matches her own. "It would be my upmost pleasure."

He raises his hammer and calls lightening to the Earth before leaping off the edge of the glacier and smashing into the roof, taking out the guards and machinery on top. Thor, now standing alone on the roof and surrounded by charred bodies, strikes the top of the concrete with Mjolnir, creating a massive hole that he hops into seconds later. Even though she's probably a few hundred feet in the air, Natasha can clearly make out the frightened shouting of their enemies in addition to Thor's battle cries.

Natasha grins and leaps after him, ignoring Clint's panicked exclamations. She feels metal arms circle around her waist less than a second later, effectively halting her fall midair.

"You know, a little warning would have been useful," Rhodey points out, sounding amused.

"Oh come on. You know it's more fun this way," Natasha returns, still grinning.

Rhodey falls silent but Clint doesn't, continuing to shout obscenities while they're lowered into the base through the hole that Thor made. Natasha pulls out her pistol and takes out several of the soldiers who are lingering in the immediate area before Rhodey sets her on the ground. She turns and gives him a nod in thanks, watching as Clint slips off his back before Rhodey takes to the sky again to help bring the rest of the team down.

Clint, now silent, glares at Natasha and holds out his arms in a 'what the hell were you thinking' gesture. Nat shrugs and takes off running down the hallway, listening to the archer let out an undignified squawk before rushing to catch up.

The pair of assassins eliminates anyone standing in their way, clearing the entire floor in under a minute (they would have been swamped if Thor hadn't gone in first). They reach the stairs that lead to the lower levels when a loud roaring is heard. Clint and Natasha turn to each other and high five as they listen to the sound of the Hulk literally rip the base to shreds.

Clint runs down the stairs first with Natasha on his heels. Once they reach the next level, the assassins split up and immediately begin searching the area_ (Thor must have found all of the stragglers this time for there is no one left on this level). _They quickly relay to each other that the floor is cleared before meeting up and heading to the next level, listening to the battle cries and shouts coming from below. Nat smirks. Thor sounds like he's working hard as he eliminates Hydra's ranks and she has no doubt that he could do this all day if needed.

Natasha and Clint are about to run down the stairs when a figure steps out of the shadows on their right. She grabs Clint by his arm and forces them back a few steps as Rumlow makes himself completely visible, dressed in the same clothes they last saw him in (once again, sans the mask). Natasha stares at Crossbones, who is now blocking their pathway, wondering how he could have gotten past Thor. Though like his allies, he could have used the chaos and confusion to hide, she reasons.

"Natalia," Rumlow greets with a smirk. He crosses his arms and glances between Natasha and Clint with a malicious gleam in his eyes.

Natasha resists the urge to curl her mouth deep frown at being addressed by her real first name. _"Rumlow,"_ she spits as if the name offended her, which in a way, it does.

Rumlow hums and rocks back on heels. "What are you doing here?" he asks, sounding slightly amused as if he's addressing a child.

Natasha bites down on the inside of her cheek, her fingers twitching against Clint's bicep.

"What do you think?" Clint grounds out. "We're stopping you and your band of Nazi assholes for good."

"You don't really think you're gonna win, do you?" Crossbones says, cockiness radiating from his posture.

Natasha smirks. "Black Widow always wins," she says before quickly removing her gun from its holster and shooting him in the head before he can react.

She turns to face Clint, who is giving her a surprised look. Natasha raises a curious eyebrow, which causes him to frown.

"What, you couldn't have done that before?" Clint teases.

Nat shrugs and lets a smile cross her face. She slides her fingers off Clint's arm and lightly punches him in the shoulder. "Come on. Let's go join up with the others."

The assassins head down the stairs and meet up with Thor, who is finishing off the last soldiers in that area. Together, they begin fighting their way through the rest of the base, clearing out each floor and taking down their enemies almost robotically. When they finally reach the ground floor, they are reunited with the other Avengers.

It is here that Rhodey reveals a soldier he just finished interrogating said that Pierce is heading to his helicopter with plans to rebuild Hydra once he's in a secured location. They quickly run outside, spotting Pierce standing by his helicopter and preparing to board. The Avengers make quick work of his bodyguards and Pepper blows up the helicopter with a repulsor blast.

Pierce stumbles away from the helicopter in time, barely managing to avoid becoming nothing but charred remains. While Pierce is distracted and attempting to put out his jacket sleeve, which is on fire, the Avengers quickly move into positions and surround him on all sides. Once the fire is put out Pierce walks around in a small circle, looking amused at the position he's in like there's still a chance that he's going to make it out of this intact.

Natasha's going to make sure that doesn't happen.

Pierce's gaze settles on Fury and he gives him a small wave before placing both hands in his pockets. Fury steps forward slightly, blankly staring a Pierce in a way Natasha didn't know he could manage.

"Why did you do it?" Fury asks, voice level and cool though Natasha can hear the underlying anger.

Pierce shrugs nonchalantly. "Simple. Herr Skull and his plan of cleansing the Earth and all other worlds, eliminating all threats and beginning a new era with Hydra in control appealed to me. When I was recruited, I was already in a positon of power in the United States Government and used that position to my advantage. I quickly rose through Hydra's ranks and became Red Skull's second in command. I recruited Rumlow and created the STRIKE team, putting him in charge and allowing him to convert other members to our cause while I solidified my position as the head of SHIELD."

"And what happened to the woman who came before you? Was that really an accident?" Fury asks.

"That was an unfortunate accident, I'm afraid," Pierce says. "I guess they just don't make breaks the same way they use to."

Natasha watches Fury's right hand twitch at learning this new information, knowing how he and the former head of SHIELD were close friends.

"Once everyone was in position, all we had to do was wait for the Skull's signal and we could finally put our plan into motion—except he was killed by the very asset we wanted to bring back to our side no less." Pierce shakes his head in a disappointed manner and sighs. "No matter though. Hydra will rise, once again and as soon as I'm through with you, I will carry out Herr Skull's final plan."

"How are you going to accomplish that? Everyone is dead—including your little lap dog, Rumlow," Fury says.

Pierce actually appears to be surprised at discovering Rumlow's fate. Curling his mouth downward in a bout of anger, he pulls out a gun that was hidden underneath his suit jacket and aims it at Fury.

Natasha's pistol is in her hands and pointed at Pierce's torso before she even registers that she unholstered the weapon.

Pierce hums, seeming unconcerned about the gun pointed at him before he continues speaking, addressing Nat directly. "I do have to express my condolences for the deaths of your friends. It is unfortunate that all of this could have been avoided if you and your "Avengers" did not aid Captain America in stealing the asset from the Red Room and holding it hostage."

"We didn't steal him—we saved him," Natasha declares, adjusting her grip on her pistol. "We gave him a home—a family. He was safe with us and able to regain his humanity, something the Red Room stole from him for the past seventy years."

"Emotions are not volatile to the mission," Pierce says, voice dripping with venom. "You of all people should know that."

Enraged, Natasha breaks formation and steps in front of Fury, swearing she can hear three voices in her ear simultaneously say, _"Do it."_ She pulls the trigger and shoots Pierce five times in the torso, killing him before he can make another sound.

Silence falls over the land as the Avengers stare at Pierce's body lying on the snow-covered ground. Natasha lowers her weapon, feeling nothing but numbing satisfaction. Pierce and Rumlow are dead. Hydra is defeated. But . . .

"Good work everyone," Fury congratulates even though there is no happiness to his tone.

Natasha holsters her weapon and slowly registers someone standing on her left. She turns to gaze at Clint, noting how relieved and exhausted he looks. He gives her a small smile, which she returns with one of her own. They stand together in silence for a few moments before Clint speaks.

"What do we do now?"

Nat purses her lips as she thinks over the past year and a half—over all the Avengers successes and failures. Over all of the enemies they've defeated and the friends they've lost. She gulps at the sudden rush of emotions and blinks back her tears, moving closer to Clint and leaning heavily against his side, the warmth of his body seeping through her uniform. Natasha takes a deep breath and whispers,

"We go home."


End file.
